


Can't Be Seen Alone

by skinsharpenedteeth (Gavinscotts)



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alpha Stiles Stilinski, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Blow Jobs, Bottom Derek Hale, Bottom Derek Hale/Top Stiles Stilinski, Consent Issues, Cuddling & Snuggling, Everyone is a Werewolf, Extremely Dubious Consent, F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Hand Jobs, Knotting, M/M, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Omega Derek Hale, Past Abuse, Past Relationship(s), Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Top Stiles Stilinski, between kate and derek only, but only between kate and derek, christmas party's are the devil, stiles and derek have enthusiastic consent
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-23
Updated: 2016-10-23
Packaged: 2018-08-24 02:38:32
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 9
Words: 42,933
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8353621
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gavinscotts/pseuds/skinsharpenedteeth
Summary: Derek needs a date for his company Christmas party to prove to his ex-alpha, Kate, that he is over her. With the help of Issac, Boyd, and Erica (mainly Erica) they find Stiles, the company psychologist and unassuming Alpha. Fake loves turns real when chemistry abounds but will their budding romance survive Kate's psychotic tendencies? This was a piece written for the Sterek Big Bang 2016.





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> FoolishSel has graciously created some [artwork](http://foolishsel.tumblr.com/post/152131996392/illustration-to-an-awesome-fic-cant-be-seen) to go along with this story which can be found on her tumblr. Please send her some love for the amazing job she did. 
> 
> This piece is for the Sterek Big Bang 2016

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The end of Kate and Derek

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Warning: This is where the rape/non con tag was put in for. More notes on the bottom...but be warned that this is probably the most graphic and abusive chapter. Most of it's fluffy, but this is not.**

The pain that bites through Derek’s body cannot compete with the desire he feels to keep doing what he’s doing. He knows that if he doesn’t stop touching himself he’s going to start bleeding soon. He knows that if he doesn’t get into the cold shower he’s going to pass out from the heat boiling his brain. Mostly, he knows that Kate should’ve been there already and that none of this should be an issue. The words from his Omega Studies class swim through his mind as he feels a small tear as his hole from where he'd been trying to fit another finger into himself too soon. **_No one is supposed to leave an omega unattended during a heat. If the designated heat mate is unable to attend to the omega during their heat, they’re supposed to either call Emergency Services or the omega needs to get on suppressants within two weeks of the heat start._** To leave an omega alone during their heat is… unthinkable. ** _An omega could die if they’re unable to stabilize their body temperature through knotting and pheromones._** They could become infertile if they have even one unattended heat (their bodies response to not being mated is apparently to assume they are unmateable). As tears of frustration and agony run coldly down his cheeks, Derek knows that if he could feel any emotion past lust and need right then he would feel a towering rage and loathing towards her. 

A breeze from outside somehow makes it's way into Derek's apartment. Fear coils in his belly as freezes his limbs as he wonders for a second if he forgot to shut up all the exits and vents. It's dangerous if his smell gets into the general populous. **_An Omega outside during heat would be tantamount to suicide without Emergency Services there to safely escort him to a heat room…_** but the absence of his alpha is making him crazy. Derek grits his teeth, pain the only indication he's started moving to fulfill his needs. He thinks there are Alpha's out there. There's an Alpha somewhere that will help him through this no questions asked. If he could just get closer to that window or door that the breeze came through... **_An unattended omega in public could cause a riot, alpha’s tearing through each other or gang mounting the omega while they’re in a heat haze, unable to give reliable consent and unable to tell when it’s “too much”._**

The sounds of his high-pitched cries echo through the bathroom as his body shudders and sobs through another unfulfilled release. He can't even wet his hand anymore with cum and he can feel the slick starting to dry up in the absence of an Alpha. His body is starting to weaken and he dully realizes there is a very good chance he's not going to be able to mate. He'll get Heat Sickness, his wounds from trying to go through a heat alone won't heal and if no one shows up, they will fester and he may die. The pain and desire left unfulfilled now for two days is making him weak. The edges of his vision are darkening and his mind is losing lucidity. He wonders if he should quit his job like Kate suggested, if she’d be here if he’d just relented in letting her keep him as her house pet. He thinks of how nice it might be to be there now, having her touch him and knot him… She wouldn’t forget to come home. She wouldn’t leave him to languish in this pain if he’d just act like a proper omega for her, let her claim him and pump him full of children. If he were a good omega none of this would be happening, he’d be full and bred and taken care of, her alpha scent would be calming him as she knotted him to her for hours on end. **_The emotional side of being left unattended during a heat cycle is devastating to an omega’s psyche. If they had a planned heat mate, especially an alpha who doesn’t show… they go through psychological breaks, sometimes permanent._**

The smell of Alpha piques his nose from the hallway outside his bathroom door. Derek opens his eyes, blearily looking for the source of the intoxicating scent and wondering if it could have possible come from outside again. He doesn’t remember crawling to the bathroom, but his body is curled in on itself against the cold tile floor next to the shower. One hand is sticky between his legs, his body still methodically trying to find the right kind of release so that his heat will dissipate and he can rest while the other is stretched towards the bathtub faucet. His eyes listlessly scan the floor and find the black pumps in the hallway, his eyes traveling quickly up to see Kate standing outside the bathroom. The smile on her face is cruel as she looks down at him, writhing on the floor. Without though, Derek abandons the bathtub and starts to pull his body towards her with one arm. 

“I’m sorry I’m late, baby,” she coos, crouching down near him. Derek’s eyes flutter closed in pleasure at the feeling of her hand running through his wet, sticky hair and her nails scratching over his scalp hard enough to draw blood. It quickly heals due to the presence of his Alpha and his body is kicking into gear, allowing it to heal itself from all the damage he’d done to it in the first 48 hours of his unattended heat. Derek notes somewhere deep in his brain that she doesn’t sound sorry, that she probably isn’t sorry, but when he pulls himself up to nuzzle her knee, his arms worming themselves around her thin waist, he decides that for the moment he doesn’t care. He’ll examine it as soon as his body stopped feeling like it’s been flayed. 

“Are you ready for me to knot you, Der? Do you want me to breed you full? Do you want what only I, as your Alpha, can give you?” Her hands grab his ears to hold him steady, thumbs rubbing through his thick, half-shift side burns. He didn’t remember shifting, but he knows he has when she bends down to lick the sharp, prominent canines of this form before kissing him. His entire body responds by straining towards the alpha who is touching him and pulling him towards her, but his mind is recoiling. He doesn’t want this alpha. After this, as soon as the heat is over, he’s ending this with her, but for right now he slides underneath her, letting her mount him and take her pleasure first, as always. 

“God, you’re cock is so big for an omega. It’d be disgusting if it didn’t feel so good.” Kate intones above him, grinding her wet pussy against his groin, pushing his prick in and out of her minutely. He hated that he loved this, loved the feeling of warm, wet heat encasing his cock. He’d known for years that he was big for an omega, outstripping some of the smaller alpha cocks with his eight and a half inches of flesh. His dick was fat, too; wide around with a thick mushroom tip usually hidden by his foreskin. Most alphas at the gym thought he was one of them and he’d been privy to plenty of lewd, congratulatory comments at his size even when soft. He’d make some omega burst, tear that omega cunt apart, breed them til their ears bled with cum, knot them so hard they’d split. He’d met the comments with non-committal grunts which had earned him a reputation…but Kate knew the truth. When she’d found out he was an omega, she’d chased him down. She’d spent six months courting him rudely, luring him in with promises of heat sex to make his mind melt, all while drilling for information about his family. She wanted what the Hales had; power, prestige, blue blood, werewolf royalty. She wanted in and she wanted Derek to be under her heel when she got it. When he’d given in to her, allowing her to assist with a heat less than a year into their relationship, the comments had started.

“You’d be such a good mate for me, Derek. You’d look so good with my babies. We could get you something omega-appropriate to wear and you wouldn’t have to work anymore. You’d have to stop working out though; your muscles are too big for an omega. You’d look so much better if you’d slim down some.” She’d repeated the same thing every time she’d knotted him, her body pulsing into him, her fingers holding his throat almost too tight while the first, intense waves of her orgasm pushed out of her. She’s pushed him over and knotted him without his being aware of it. His mind was gone in the heat haze as it tried to repair and prepare itself for her pups. (He never told her he took birth control to stop that from ever happening, but he suspected after two years she knew anyway.) 

They were still on the bathroom floor, his face pushed into the tile that had warmed against his cheek while he listened to her talk about how she’d fix him, help him become a real omega. Derek tried to tune her out while he enjoyed the sensation of his body cooling while she filled him, stretching his birth canal with her knot, which was small and could slip out of Derek easily even when fully inflated. 

“I could become a Hale. I'd do your family so proud. I’d take your name, baby. We’d make such a good mating pair, we’d be so powerful…” she sighed into his ear, letting the full weight of her body rest against his back. The revulsion that hit Derek at the idea of bringing her into his family sealed the deal for him. As soon as her knot shrank and his body shook off the heat hormones he was ending this. There was no way he was letting her into his family. In the two years they’d been dating, he’d never intentionally introduced her to a single member of his family and the idea of having her paired with him for the rest of his life made him want to try to dislodge her knot prematurely so he could get away. Derek felt himself falling asleep despite himself. His body was tired, it needed to recover and it needed rest to do that. Even as he lost consciousness, however, he couldn't stop thinking that this was not what he wanted, this was not who he wanted. 

\--- 

When Derek awoke he was alone on the bathroom floor. His skin felt grimy from sweat and Kate’s bodily fluids. He felt her breeding liquid ooze from between his cheeks and down onto the tile. Grimacing, he pulled himself up to stand, noticing that his body was stiff from the two days of heat unattended, unable to heal itself fully from only one knotting. His heat was over, however, so one knotting was all he'd get. In a few days the soreness would fade and with that reminder Derek slowly put himself into the shower, scrubbing his skin ferociously in an effort to get her smell off of him. He grabbed his scent neutralizing lotion as soon as he was out of the shower, rubbing it over every inch of his body that he could. Finally satisfied he’d gotten rid of as much of her stench on him that he could without a proper skinning, he walked out into the hallway and towards the kitchen in hopes that she'd left and he could drink his coffee in peace. 

Unfortunately, the sight of Kate was standing in his kitchen eating toast and watching the news over the breakfast bar showed that she hadn't. Derek wanted to push her out of his apartment without explanation. His hands clenched and unclenched at his sides with the desire to get her out of his sight. He wanted her to just leave and understand that she was a terrible alpha and that he didn’t want her in his life anymore, but that wasn’t how life worked. She wouldn’t get the hint and leave of her own accord unless it was to make him suffer, so he’d have to be the one to throw her out. Squaring his shoulders he let his rage towards her fill him with a courage he didn't usually feel when confronting her. 

“Kate,” he said to catch her attention. She smiled at him lasciviously, eyes raking over him as she bit into her toast. He had put on some boxer briefs and a tank before coming into the kitchen. 

"Hey Der, you're looking well-fucked" she replied, toying with her toast as she appraised him. 

“Kate, I want you to leave,” he said once she’d met his eyes again. Her expression didn’t falter as she kept looking at him like he was something to eat. She dropped her toast onto the counter carelessly, the jam side down, as she started to saunter closer to him. He could smell his arousal and it was making his throat feel thick as his stomach turned in disgust. 

“Kate, I want you to leave NOW.” Derek tried again more loudly as she walked closer to him, knowing the scowl he was giving her had the power to make most do exactly as he said. She just grinned up at him as she stopped in front of him. 

“Why are you being so rude, Derek? Mates spend the day together after a heat. Omegas need cuddles and pampering to help you heal after such a traumatic time.” She reached out like she was going to brush his hair off his forehead and Derek jerked his head back. Crossing his arms, Derek took a step away from her and glared. 

“We are not mates. I do not want you touching me anymore. I think this…. _thing_ … we’ve been doing has gone on long enough and I want you to leave." 

She wasn’t smiling anymore. Her eyes starting to bleed dark red as she listened to him and her teeth were beginning to look decidedly sharp. Derek stood his ground, but he couldn't help the thrum of worry that swept over him. In her Alpha form, Kate had proven that she could overpower him. She could hold him down if necessary for him to remember his place with her. 

“You can’t get rid of me, Derek. I’m your best option. Do you think any other alpha would put up with your… deficiencies?” Her eyes were narrowed, watching Derek for a reaction. Derek could help the pang of uncertainty that went through him at hearing her refer to his non-traditional gender portrayal. 

“Someone else will want me, Kate, but that’s not important right now. Right now, I don’t want you… in my life.. ever, again. I want you to leave my apartment and consider our relationship over. I do not recognize you as my alpha and you sure as fuck as not my potential mate. Please leave,” Derek said, his tone belaying more calm than he felt. His body was tensed and ready to defend itself should she decide to let rage dictate her actions. 

“Fuck you, Derek Hale! You’re going to realize what a mistake you made as soon as that next heat comes a creeping. Who else is going to knot you as good as I do? Who else is going to put up with your big dick, wanna-be alpha cock? Who else is going to want an omega bitch who looks like an alpha? You’re a fucked up piece of trash, Derek. No one else will want you! NO ONE ELSE WILL WANT YOU! Do you even fucking hear me when I talk to you? No one wants some gender queer omega. I've been trying to fucking help you, trying to get you right, but fucking fine! You don't want me? Fucking ME?! I'm the best fucking offer you're ever going to fucking get until you start acting like a real fucking omega," she screamed. She'd grabbed her bag and began tying on her trench while spitting vehemence at him as she made her way to the door. “You just wait. I’ll see you when that cunt of yours starts wanting a knot again. I know you’ll come back. I know you’ll come find me. Next time I knot you, I'm going to claim you and then I won't be so lenient with you. You'll have to be a real omega when you're mine, bitch.” 

As soon as the resounding slam of the door faded Derek let out the breath he wasn’t aware he’d been holding. _’That could’ve gone much worse’_ ,he thought to himself, turning the deadbolt and door lock. He listened with his back against the door as she left the building, the clacking of her heels getting quieter as she stormed down the street and away from him. He couldn’t deny that he did worry about finding someone else and about finding another mate, because he wasn’t a typical omega… but he also knew that he’d rather die alone in a heat haze than ever feel her body against his again. Sliding down the door, Derek sat in the silence of his apartment and just breathed as the relief of finally ousting the worst decision in his life spread through his heavy limbs and soothed a part of him inside that he hadn't known was aching until now when that dull throb had begun to subside. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the rape/non con tag was put on for this specific chapter. While Kate and Derek had a previous agreement for her to help him through his heat, I feel that this shows the exact nature of their relationship. He didn't want her advances after she left him lingering, but would die without it. So... it's not exactly non con, but I felt like it was so close that it would be better safe than sorry. The story gets much fluffier going forward.


	2. Chapter One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Derek finds out there's a company Christmas party and kind of loses his mind about it... much office furniture, many pieces.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The wonderful and talented [FoolishSel](http://foolishsel.tumblr.com) did some amazing artwork for this story which can viewed [ here](http://foolishsel.tumblr.com/post/152131996392/illustration-to-an-awesome-fic-cant-be-seen). Please check it out and let her know how amazing her work is!! She is truly gifted!

The notice came through in November, lighting everyone’s inbox and causing a cacophony of groans and squeals throughout the cubicle farm. It had been two months since Derek had seen Kate in his kitchen and he'd thought he was working through his issues from it as well as he could- Mostly by avoiding thinking about them, and working out more often when his brain wouldn't shut up. But now staring at him through his e-mail sat the worst case scenario in not moving away to a deserted island as soon as he'd been able to pick himself off the floor of his threshold. 

The company he worked for, Lahey Gaming, had set its annual Christmas party for a date six weeks away and had decided it would be sharing the holiday’s jubilation with its sister company, Argent-Ware. Derek stared at the calendar notification in silence, a murder-scowl overtaking his facial features as the ramifications of the merge presented themselves to him. The look coupled with the low, threatening growl he was unconsciously making seemed to be enough to stop his friend and cohort Isaac Lahey (CEO’s son and company whipping beta) at the door to his office. Derek barely noticed his friend sticking his head in and watching curiously as Derek crushed his computer mouse in his hand and bared his not-very-human teeth at the computer screen. The injustice and latent fury from the relationship reared its head, making Derek a ticking time bomb the longer the notification sat displayed in front of him. 

“So I take it the invitation got to you before I could get here to warn you?” Isaac tried to joke as he walked to the front of Derek’s desk. Derek glared up at his smiling face and his apologetic grin and felt his eyebrows recede as the shift took over more fully. Isaac’s eyes widened and he backed up a few steps, hands in front of him in an attempt to be placating. 

“Hey! I didn’t make the arrangements, Der! It was my Dad. You know I wish we could cut Argent-Ware off our apron strings!” Isaac continued to back up as Derek stood up from behind his desk, his warning growl getting louder and more aggressive. 

Derek didn’t care about excuses. He just wanted the invitation to disappear. He just wanted Kate to work somewhere that didn’t share a fucking mandatory Christmas party with his company. He just wanted to forget the last two years existed. He slammed his hand down on the desk, denting the laminate top and particle board underneath with his fist as his canines grew longer and cut into his pulled back lips before a snarl burst out of him towards his friend who was almost to the door. 

“Oooo-kay. I’m going to leave you to calm down, Der. When you’re ready to talk, I’ll be making the rounds. Catch me then.” Isaac was backing out of the office slowly, his hands still held in front of him. When he reached the doorway, he grabbed the handle and closed it softly behind him. Derek knew he was being irrational, but that didn’t help his temper any and it added embarrassment at how badly he was still reacting to the merest hint that he might have to see Kate again. He grabbed the nearest object, a vase Kate had given him with flowers one Valentine’s Day, and threw it with all his strength towards the door, delighting in the sound of it shattering. Maybe destruction would make him feel better. 

Standing, he gripped the edge of his desk and flipped it, sending his computer, files, and drawings tumbling in its wake. The crash and rumble made a mean smile come over his face as he flicked open his claws and walked around his room, shredding the wallpaper and drywall in his wake. He picked up his company chairs and slammed them onto the floor, watching their legs fly off and their backs break with the force. Last, he walked over to his bookshelf and started to attack the books, throwing them behind him into the mess of his office. His hand stopped when he came to a picture of himself and his mom. The frame was childish, hastily slapped together with popsicle sticks and painted. It said, “My Perfect Little Omega” in his mom’s flowing, flourish-filled script. 

He stopped then, the anger fading out of him and his shift receding from him. He felt a bone deep ache, almost like a raw and exposed nerve that had been hammered alive by the knowledge that he would have to see Kate again. He would have to show up and see her cruel, smiling eyes as she assessed him. He'd have to show that she was right and that no one else had accepted him because he wasn’t in any way, shape, or form the perfect omega...and he'd tried. He'd been on dates and even posted himself on a dating website for Omegas. He'd had exactly three hits and two of them had been Alpha's asking if he'd gotten confused about what the site was for. 

That had hurt more than Derek cared to admit, but the two bottles of Wolfsbane Wine in the trash can the next morning probably told the tale without him needing to speak it. Maybe it was stupid to hang your self-image on having a mate, but after all the things she did and said to him, he felt like he’d truly be a failure if he showed up to the party alone. He could see in his mind’s eye how she’d react to him, standing along the wall with his wine glass and watching as everyone else latched onto their mates and danced or laughed. She’d smirk and terrorize him the entire night with needling comments and invitations to come back. He might even go home with her, let her use his body for the night knowing she’d just remind him of how unacceptable he was as an omega in the morning. He didn’t want to be weak, but he didn’t know how to break the cycle if he was alone. 

Tears started to fill his eyes as he sank down to the floor, clutching the picture of himself and his mom to his chest. His mom always told him that he was perfect. She never stressed that he should be mated up as soon as possible. She wanted him to have independence and a career. She pushed him to accept himself first and then look for a mate. Talia still pushed him to take care of his own needs first before he bowed to another’s will. She’d hated Kate, though she’d never said it to Derek’s face. He could tell by the way she’d watched her every time Kate had “accidentally” run into the pack or his family while they were out in public. Derek had been hurt by his mother’s disapproval, but coupled with Kate’s constant verbal abuse, he’d developed a dependency on having an alpha’s approval. He needed an alpha to make him feel good about himself. He hated that more than he hated Kate. He hated feeling like a stereotypical, weak Omega. He hated that he had at some point stopped trusting his own opinion. 

Wiping the tears from his eyes, he pulled out a handkerchief from his pocket and blew his nose with it. He needed to go to HR and let them know about his breakdown so he could be billed for new office equipment. Hopefully he would catch someone understanding that would keep the outburst private, but knowing his luck the entire floor would know by lunch. He hadn't been quiet about it after all. By tomorrow, everyone in the company would’ve heard about it. Flushing, he put the picture frame on top of his file cabinet. It was one of the only pieces of furniture in his office to survive. 

‘ _How **pathetic**._ ’ He thought to himself, surveying the damage. _’Just like an Omega, Derek, you can’t hold in your emotions. You can’t stop from going postal over something as stupid as seeing your ex for an evening. Stop being such a little bitch and Alpha-up, loser.’_

Brushing a hand through his hair and straightening his tie, he took in a deep calming breath before opening his door and stepping out into the cubicle area. The two beta’s sitting across from his office door in their cubicles gave him brief wide, side-eyes, but thankfully kept their mouths shut about the racket they surely heard come from behind his closed door. He scowled at them anyway, hoping that would scare them further into holding their tongue. 

Most of his office believed him to be an Alpha due to his size and demeanor. He was a catch as an Alpha. He loved the feeling of power it gave him when people listened to his thoughts and opinions while they thought he was a breeder, but he knew how fragile the facade was. When people found out he was an Omega, even at work where he’d proven himself time and again to be smart and capable at his job, their demeanors changed towards him. He was then treated more delicately and his objections dismissed more casually by what he considered to be his peers. As an Omega, his true place was at home where he could be bred by his Alpha and pop out squalling pup after squalling pup, not in the workplace where real decisions were made. 

Derek shook the thought of babies out of his head, shuddering inwardly at the thought of being at home covered in spit-up all day long. He found Isaac leaning against the desk of their mutual friend Boyd, smiling and chatting animatedly. When Isaac spotted Derek his smile fell a little as he waited to ascertain his friend’s mood. 

“I’m fine now, Isaac. I’m sorry about earlier,” Derek began, ducking his head in apology. Isaac’s smile returned then as he looked between Boyd and Derek. Boyd surely knew what had happened earlier if Isaac was standing at his desk. His lack of confusion was a big tip-off that Isaac had told him about what he'd walked in on. Derek inwardly grimaced at how that made him look to his friends. 

“It’s no problem, Der. I’m sorry I couldn’t get to you before the committee sent out that e-vite. I know it’s the fuckin’ pits, man.” Isaac patted his arm in a consolatory gesture while Boyd nodded his agreement, looking up at Derek solemnly. 

“You could always skip the party. Call in sick or say you’re someone’s rut partner or something. Just avoid her altogether,” Boyd offered. Derek smiled weakly at Boyd for his suggestion. It was kind to think he could just back out of this and not suffer any repercussions from it. 

“Kate wouldn’t allow it. The second I don’t show, she’ll be yapping to anyone she can about what a broken little Omega I am to avoid work over an ex. She’d ruin my reputation.” Derek responded sadly, imaging how awkward work would be after the Christmas holiday was up and everyone came back knowing about his not-quite secret. If Kate got drunk, the stories would get lewder and louder. It was worth going just to make sure he escorted her out before she could make a scene. 

“What about taking someone to the party then? Surely you could find yourself a nice beta to be your plus-one?” Isaac suggested, crossing his arms over his chest and looking Derek up and down. Derek sighed, thinking about how Kate would react. A beta would just bait her into drunkenly yelling out more abuse and mockery. He could hear her laughter now. Shaking his head to dislodge the image in his mind, he responded to the suggestion with a grimace. 

“No… If I were to take anyone, which I don’t believe is likely to happen, it has to be a fucking Alpha. She’s… she was always telling me that another Alpha would never put up with my ‘dominant posturing’, as she called it. If I’m going to have to face her, I’m going to need a motherfucking Alpha to prove to her I am over her shit and have found someone who doesn’t think I’m _defective_.” He said the last part through clenched teeth, angry at how he felt he needed to present himself for her as a bred, mated Omega in order for her to take his rejection of her seriously. He felt like if she didn’t see him with an Alpha, he’d have failed. She needed to realize her mistake and to recognize that there was absolutely nothing wrong with him. He was a perfectly acceptable omega even if he didn’t conform to her personal standards. 

His friends were staring at him apprehensively at his show of aggression. Both Boyd and Isaac were betas and therefore had no personal experience with Alpha/Omega power struggles. They could watch from the outside, but they didn’t understand truly what the big deal was. All betas were sexually interchangeable. They could switch positions in the relationship with the flip of a coin and Derek envied them for that more than he could say aloud. Since he was an Omega, he knew he belonged on the bottom, getting bred and cared for by an Alpha. Part of him used to want that, used to want a strong Alpha to give him what he needed, but after Kate… After Kate he could only think of how much he didn’t want to be handcuffed to the house, barefoot and pregnant until he became infertile. He didn’t want that life. He loved his job and he loved working out and he loved being able to go places alone on his own schedule. He loved it. He didn’t want anyone to tell him he couldn’t have that if he was to be with them. He didn't want anyone to 'fix' him. 

“Okay… progressive, liberal Alpha search it is then. We can find one, I’m sure of it.” Isaac replied, though his tone sounded doubtful. Boyd nodded his head in agreement while looking deep in thought. 

“Are you on your way to HR?” Boyd asked, looking up at Derek as if he already had a plan and Derek going to HR was just the first step. 

“Yeah… Gotta…uh… be billed for some furniture.” Derek winced as he admitted it, sorry more than ever that he had lost his temper. He was sure he'd be more sorry once he saw the bill. 

“Okay, let’s go see my mate, Erica. She works up there and she knows _everybody_ , man. I bet she’ll be able to give you a list of Alphas to pick from.” Boyd said, standing up and locking his computer. Derek nodded, surprised at the suggestion, but sure Boyd was right. He’d met Erica a couple times and if anyone knew everyone, it was Erica. 

\--- 

Boyd led the way up to HR with Derek and Isaac trailing behind him. Isaac looked nervous and excited at the idea of an adventure in the office while Derek only felt a little sick to his stomach. Was this going to be better or more successful than going online through Matez.com and picking up a random alpha? The closer he got to Erica’s office, the more sure he felt that this was all going to be a giant mistake. He’d almost convinced himself to turn around until suddenly they were there and Boyd was ushering him through the door to Erica’s office. They crowded in and the click of the door behind him felt like the first nail in his coffin. 

“My, my, my… not too often I get a triple delight in the afternoon. What’s the occasion, baby? Finally changed your mind about fulfilling my fantasy bucket list?” Erica teased from behind her desk as her eyes danced over Isaac and Derek. Her blonde hair was piled high on her head and her cat eye glasses made her look like a retro secretary out of Mad Men. Boyd chuckled and leaned in to kiss her on her forehead before addressing the reason for their visit. 

“Derek here has got a problem. Isaac’s avoiding work. I’m chaperoning.” Boyd told her succinctly as he sat in one of the arm chairs in front of her desk. Derek followed his example and sat down in the other while Isaac hovered by the back wall. Erica looked at each of them with an intrigued smile on her face before zeroing back in on Derek. 

Derek swallowed so hard his throat clicked and he wildly thought of how fast he could get through the door behind him if he shoved Boyd and Isaac into her path while he fled. 

“What’s your problem, Derek?” she asked teasingly, leaning over her desk and onto her arms as if he were going to lean in and start a gossip fest. He didn’t do things like that… at work. It also put her ample decolletage on display. Derek heard Boyd chuckle beside him and her eyes left his momentarily to look at her mate and wink conspiratorially. 

“I need some new office furniture… I may have destroyed most of mine.” Derek grumbled, heat starting to climb up his neck from beneath his collar. She cocked an eyebrow at him in silent query. When it was obvious he wasn't going to indulge her curiosity voluntarily, she leaned back and leveled a more professional look at him. 

“Why did you do that?” she asked. He could practically see her salivating for the story behind his tantrum. Derek glared at her, folding his hands over his chest and resolving to wait her out. This lasted for about thirty seconds before Isaac spoke up from behind him. 

“Oh Saint Remus, Derek. It's not that big of a deal. He got the e-vite for the Christmas party this year and it set him off. His ex will be there and she's a royal knot-off. He over-reacted and now he needs new office equipment. Also, he wants to show her up with a new Alpha so she won't hound him just cause he's alone, so we need you to find someone he can take to the party.” Derek whipped around so fast that Isaac bumped into the wall trying to back away from his snarl. 

"Way to over share, Isaac!" Derek spit out. Isaac shrugged, but turned his head to bear his neck in a show of submission. 

"Easy tiger!” Erica called out cheekily, sitting back at attention as he turned his snarl back at her. She reached out and pinched his cheek, surprising him enough to calm out of his fit. He looked at her confused as she smirked and hid her smile behind a flower pen. She looked like she'd finally found his measure. 

“Why’s it so important to you to show her up? I mean, I’m totally willing to open up classified documents to vet some potential alphas for you, but you could just go stag and tell her to stuff it, ya know? This being modern times and all.” 

"Derek, you might as well just give her what she wants. I love this girl, but she won't budge until you do. It's fifty/fifty or nothing," Boyd advised. Derek looked over at him nervously and he nodded in encouragement. Taking a fortifying inhale, Derek started slowly. 

“She was… pretty abusive… towards me. She never said it out loud, but I know she was using me to try and get close to my family. She wants the benefits that come with old blood: Power and money. She's not satisfied with what her own family can give her. I dated her for two years against my better judgement and she completely demoralized me in that time. She made me _need_ her. When I broke it off, she told me that I'd never find someone to want me again and that she'd be ready for when I couldn't find someone else and the next time I went into heat she'd force a mating on me. She’s… she’s pretty much Satan. And… and I need her to know that I’ve moved on and that there is no chance for her to slip back into my life.” Derek mumbled out, embarrassed he was having to tell anyone any part of his history with Kate. 

“Oh she sounds like a peach of an Alpha...” Erica commented, joking tone lost as she looked over her glasses at Derek critically. 

“She was purposefully two days late for the last heat we spent together…she used my heat to try and breed me despite my wishes otherwise…she spent a lot of time critiquing my appearance and demeanor because I wasn’t the classic Omega fuck doll she apparently wanted… she—“ Derek had to stop talking. This was the problem with opening up about how horrible Kate had been. His mouth didn't want to stop telling people. He didn't want to shut up about it and he wasn't sure it would be cathartic if he let go. He was afraid of what would come out if he didn't force his lips closed. Erica looked horrified at what he’d said. He didn’t think he’d need to expound any more on the situation, she obviously got the point. His knuckles and jaw were beginning to ache with how hard he was clenching the muscles so he began methodically loosening them. 

“Yeah, okay… fuck that cunt. Project Make-A-Mate is underway then. What are your parameters?” Erica asked, twirling suddenly in her chair to type in her login information for the HR database. She was now all business as her fingers flew over the keyboard. 

“Uh…” Derek started, still a little caught up in the lightheaded feeling of getting himself back into the present and away from his memories. 

“Needs to be an Alpha.” Boyd supplied for him. Erica nodded and typed in the search information. 

“Needs to be a woman.” Isaac chirped from the back. 

“Uh….No. No, wait.” Derek cut in, looking nervously between Isaac's confused expression and Erica's arched brow as her hands hovered above the keyboard. “Actually, there’s no gender preference. M-Males work fine, too.” 

“Oh really?” Erica said, a devilish smile on her lips. She gave Derek another appraising look before biting her bottom lip and shaking her head in regret. "You sure about that Bucket List wish fulfillment, Boyd? Cause..." 

"Neither of us are Alphas, Erica. Be good," Boyd replied, chuckling at her longing look towards Derek and subsequent pout as she turned back to the computer. When Derek dared a glance over his shoulder at Isaac, he only saw shock in his expression. 

“I didn’t know you were into dudes!” Isaac hissed at him in a whisper as if Derek had kept a state secret from him. Derek shrugged and looked at the ground for a minute before replying. 

“It’s not… I mean, the last couple relationships I’ve been in have been girls, yeah, but I’ve dated both. It’s been awhile, but… you know… I’m not set on a specific gender. I like guys just as well.” Derek whispered back as Erica continued typing Luna knows what into her computer. 

“So alpha is really all you’re looking for?” Erica asked, glancing over at him. 

“Well, I’d prefer if they weren’t a douche bag Neanderthal like my last Alpha, but yeah. That’s pretty much the criteria.” Derek said with a shrug. Erica let out a sigh of extreme exasperation before turning away from her computer. She seemed to have a flair for dramatics and Derek tried to wait patiently as she took her glasses off and looked him back over head to toe. Her next question she addressed to Boyd even as she kept sweeping looks over Derek. 

“Stiles?” She asked, chewing on the ends of her glasses. Derek looked over at Boyd for his reaction. Boyd’s mouth drew down and quirked as his expression took on a look that read ‘Hm. I hadn’t thought of that before, but yeah, that could work’. Or at least that’s what Derek read into it as Boyd started nodded slowly. 

“Yeah. He’d be good. I keep forgetting he’s an Alpha.” Boyd commented. Erica shrieked with glee and clapped her hands twice before turning back to the computer and typing something into the employee files search bar. 

“What is a Stiles?” Derek asked, looking over at Isaac to see that he looked lost in begrudging agreement and contemplation over their suggestion as well. Derek waited, glancing between the three until Erica spoke up. 

“Dr. S. Genim Stilinski. Don't ask me to pronounce what the 'S' stands for because it's some crazy Polish shit, but most people know him as 'Stiles'. He’s a psychologist that we employ to record and analyze beta-testing for new games and sometimes help figure out ways to make our games more appealing and engaging psychologically. He’s really brilliant, but he’s pretty unassuming. He looks like a beta, but he’s grade-A Alpha. I have to sign his rut forms every couple months so trust me, I'm intimately aware with his Alpha-hood in a strictly professional way." She winked at Boyd who shook his head and smiled at her in amusement. "I can’t believe you haven’t met him, Derek!” 

Erica chattered on as the file loaded. Derek listened to her, nodding occasionally and moving closer to the desk so he could see her computer screen a little easier. What popped up was a shock. Stiles work photo looked like a mug shot for a college student. He was grinning as if he’d just gotten caught doing something extremely naughty, but absolutely worth it. Derek could see brown hair and eyes, as well as an upturned nose and pale skin and thick rimmed glasses. He looked attractive enough, but he also kind of looked like the kind of trouble Derek had told himself he should avoid. He looked between Boyd and Erica a little apprehensively which didn’t seem to diminish their excitement. 

“He looks… nice?” Derek offered, glancing back at the photo. His lips were distracting even on something as innocuous as a work ID photo. 

“He is nice and I happen to know he’s very Equal Opportunity and into social change through action. I think you’d like him. He’s not mated and he’s not seeing anyone currently. His last thing was about six months ago with a beta named Malia. From what she told me, the sex was great!” Erica gushed. 

“Uh, I just need him to pose as my boyfriend. I don’t think any actual sex needs to happen.” Derek dodged. Sex didn’t even sound appealing to him at that moment, not even great sex. 

“Well yeah, but say one thing leads to another. Say the Christmas party leads to New Year’s leads to Valentine’s Day. Isn’t it nice to know he’s got some accolades out there for his tender love-making skills?” Erica asked, giggling. 

"Oh Erica..." Boyd chided, even though he was smiling indulgently at her. 

“Oh Luna, no.” Derek buried his face in his hands as Boyd and Isaac broke into chuckles around him. After a minute, Erica shushed them before turning back to Derek. 

“Now how are we going to get you two together?” Erica asked, eyes turned to the company at large for ideas. The chuckles cut off completely and silence reigned momentarily while they all worried at the problem. Surprisingly, it was Isaac who spoke up with the solution. 

“He and I went to the same university for our bachelors. And I see him on my rounds a lot. I could invite him to lunch and Derek could also be there?” Isaac offered, looking ready to sink back as soon as everyone shot down his idea. No one did though. It was a solid idea. 

“No, that sounds good. Derek, think you could swing a brief lunch meeting with this guy to feel him out?” Erica asked, turning her attention back to Derek. Derek nodded at her and then turned and nodded to Isaac. Isaac smiled, pleased with himself for coming up with a viable plan and Derek tried not to think too much about how Isaac too had been the victim of an overbearing alpha in his life. 

“Alright then, excellent. Now, Boyd and Isaac? Out. I need to go over some billing procedures with Derek here since he doesn’t know how to drink away his anger like the rest of us.” Erica finished, shooing her mate and Isaac out while Derek hunkered down in his chair, blush filling his cheeks as he remembered the real reason for his HR visit. 

"Okay naughty boy, time to get out your credit card," Erica said, turning and starting to gather the paperwork for his office. Derek shut his eyes and groaned. She cackled as she began filling in blanks and adding up his expenses. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You can check out my stuff and my at [ my tumblr, SkinSharpenedTeeth ](http://skinsharpenedteeth.tumblr.com) any time. I take prompts and I like talking to folks about Sterek. 
> 
> Comments and kudos are always welcome and help me get out of bed in the morning to continue writing. Thank you! :)


	3. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stiles and Derek discuss the proposal

Lunch didn’t happen until the following Thursday. Derek's schedule suffered from lunch meeting after lunch meeting and on the days he'd been free it seemed that Stiles was otherwise engaged with his own work demands. By the time it did happen, Derek had been given plenty of time to talk himself up and get comfortable with the many outcomes of such a meeting. Derek had almost convinced himself that he was, in fact, a catch and with that buoyant feeling in him, he left his office to go meet up with everyone at the cafeteria. That confidence lasted him until all four of them (because Boyd refused to rely on Isaac and Derek’s read of the situation) sat down in the company cafeteria and Derek got a good look at Stiles up close. 

‘Great Moon’ Derek thought immediately, ‘Those lips are a fucking gift’. As soon as the thought fully formed, Derek was blushing self-consciously into his salad. Isaac was taking the lead and began introducing everyone to Stiles, who was looking over the two strangers curiously. Derek tried not to flush harder with self-conscious pride when he noticed Stiles' eyes resting on him more so than Boyd. 

“This is my friend Stiles Stilinski, Alpha of Alphas.” Isaac ribbed as he elbowed Stiles' arm good-naturedly. Stiles rolled his eyes dramatically before opening the wax paper wrap from his sandwich and smiling back. Derek caught his eye briefly before hurriedly looking away. 

“What-ehhhvvver, dude. So what department do you work in?” Stiles asked through a mouthful of white bread and chicken salad. Derek tried not to stare at the stray crumb attached to his upper lip while finishing his own mouth full of greens. 

“I’m in finance.” Derek chimed in a moment later when it was obvious Boyd wasn’t going to offer anything. He'd momentarily forgotten that Boyd and Stiles had met previously since he'd obviously known who he was while they were in Erica's office. 

“Oh that’s cool. Did you hear about the Alpha who wrecked his office up there last week? I heard it was some violent shit storm. I wish I knew the whole story. Apparently, they had to replace just about every piece of equipment in the room AND rehang sheet rock on the walls.” Stiles mentioned, picking at the fruit cup he’d gotten with his sandwich. Derek glanced over to see if Boyd and Isaac had reacted, and by the time Stiles glanced up from chasing a grape with his fork, Derek could have been swallowed by the Earth happily. Everyone but Stiles was sitting quietly in shock. 

“Uh…..” Both Boyd and Isaac began while side-eyeing Derek who was scowling and dying to embarrassment. Stiles seemed to pick up on the cues because his eyes went wide and he choked momentarily before hastily sipping his soda. 

“Oh FUCK. That was you, dude?” he whispered conspiratorially while looking around to see if anyone was paying attention. No one particularly was so he looked at Derek expectantly like he'd just start spilling. 

“Yeah. That was me.” Derek supplied tartly, taking a sip of his water and using every last inch of strength in his body to not appear outwardly as enraged as he felt. This was a fucking disaster. 

“Man. That was impressive. What happened to cause you to go so haywire? Had to be something major… Now I’m aware there are anomalies, but you’re holding your anger in right now so it must’ve been something pretty major to make you lose it.” 

“I don’t really want to—“ Derek started, only to be cut off by Boyd clearing his throat. 

“Derek, it’s kind of the reason we’re here.” Boyd said quietly, giving Derek a significant look. 

“Uh, what?” Stiles asked, eyes darting between the two of them. 

“My outburst…. I want to speak with you about it…but I don’t really want to discuss it in public.” Derek was glancing around at all the people now filling the cafeteria. Stiles seemed to catch on and nodded as he too glanced around again. 

“Okay, yeah… uhm… well we can go to my office if you want? I kind of have a free afternoon for once so I mean we can talk about whatever it is there?” Stiles offered. Derek nodded and smiled briefly in relief that he wouldn’t have to discuss his outburst where he could be overheard. 

"Sure. After lunch," Derek decided, digging into the rest of his salad. Stiles nodded and turned to start reliving glory days with Isaac.The rest of lunch was filled with Isaac and Stiles trading stories from their days at college together, laughing and talking animatedly. Derek watched with fascination as Stiles talked with his entire body and not just with his mouth. He let his eyes linger over the long, thick-jointed fingers and the mole-spattered neck thinking to himself that even if Stiles wasn’t an Alpha of Alphas… he was certainly Alpha enough. 

After lunch, Derek followed Stiles to his office which was housed in the basement of the building. As soon as they stepped out of the elevator, Derek began to feel suffocated by the lack of windows or color. The hallways felt sterile and mazelike, making him feel like if he turned only once down a second corridor the walls would shift behind him and he’d be lost. He didn’t see how anyone could work down here. Stiles kept checking over his shoulder as he led the way, trying to throw smiles of encouragement each time Derek seemed to fall a further step back behind him. 

“I promise, this isn’t where I murder people.” Stiles joked, digging his office key out of his pocket. 

"Wasn't worried about that until you said something," Derek tried to joke back even though he knew his shoulders where hunched up to his ears in tension. There were no windows and no way to escape. Derek wasn't even sure he could make it back to the elevator on his own. Stiles snorted at his poor attempt at a joke and opened the office door. Derek took a deep breath, praying the inside wasn't as hostile as the corridors leading to it. 

It wasn’t. At all. In fact, it couldn’t have been in bigger contrast to the outside. It was dim, lit by lamps placed throughout the room which warmed the forest green walls. It was also huge! Derek didn’t know they offered offices this big in the company. It dwarfed his own and seemed on par with the V.P.’s office. The brown, industrial carpet that all the offices had was covered with a Turkish style area rug in creams, reds, and blues. There was a moss green velvet couch in the middle which was flanked by two dark leather chairs, and a pillowed coffee table in the middle. Two adjacent walls were covered in tall dark bookshelves which were packed full of books and oddities. The other two walls were covered in maps, pictures, and paintings; more leaned against the bottom of the wall waiting to be hung. Stiles’ desk was mainly hidden under stacks of paper and monitors. There was a giant idea board above it filled with pictures and handwritten notes (some of which, Derek noted, were connected with stoplight colored strings). A white board was mounted to the wall next to it filled with cramped handwriting and small drawings. There were indoor plants scattered throughout the room, but most were on a tiered shelving system with a grow light hanging over them. 

After entering, Stiles chucked off his messenger bag next to his desk and reached into a small, almost hidden mini fridge that sat against the wall between his desk and the stack of framed pictures. He offered Derek a bottle of water and then ushered him over to the couch. Stiles sat down on one end, leaning back and fiddling with the cap of his water. Derek followed, still in awe of the office. He wanted to dig through the bookshelves and nap on the couch and exist in that space all the time. It had an instant calming effect on him that few places outside of his own apartment and his parents’ house did. Stiles waited patiently, sipping his water and letting his eyes travel around his own office like he was trying to figure out what Derek was thinking. When Stiles did speak up, it startled Derek out of a reverie and he felt himself flinch guiltily at getting so lost in thought and taking up Stiles’ time.

“So…. What do I have to do with you demolishing your office? I’m pretty sure before today I have never laid eyes on you…and I’d remember it if I had.” Stiles started, grinning at Derek’s faint blush. Derek found himself staring at his own knees as he gathered himself to respond, his water bottle forgotten on the couch next to him. 

“You don’t really have anything to do with that part of it. That was… I mean I wasn’t…There was someone else who… Fuck!” Derek burst out, pushing his hands against his eyes. Again he was struck by how much he hated to have to voice the story to anyone, but especially to an alpha who would probably not understand why he did what he did one single bit… or what he needed now. 

“So okay let’s go with another approach. What triggered your anger?” Stiles asked quietly, watching Derek with a small frown bowing his lips and his eyebrows drawn more closely together. Derek sighed and picked up the water bottle for something to do with his hands, rolling it between his palms as he stared unfocused in front of him. 

“The Christmas party e-vite.” Derek gritted, hands tightening around the plastic water bottle. The crackling report of the plastic echoed through the twilight of the room. Derek could see Stiles nodding absently next to him. 

“Do you hate the holidays?” Stiles asked, setting his own water down next to him on the floor. 

“No. I… My ex is going to be there.” Derek’s voice sounded dejected even to his own ears. He felt himself slumping further forward, his arms aching to wrap around his knees so he could protect himself. Stiles’ eyebrows rose in obvious shock and confusion. 

“Okay? And you don’t want to see him or her?” Stiles asked delicately. Derek knew he was fishing, but couldn’t find himself to care. He already felt defeated. There was no way Stiles was going to agree to this and no way it would work even if he did. He was doomed. 

“Her. Kate Argent. She works at Argent-Ware. She’s the owner’s daughter and she’s my ex-Alpha. I… I went through a really bad break-up with her and some things were said that… I’m not sure I’m strong enough to see her without another alpha on my arm. I was trying to find someone who wasn’t a complete knot-head who might go with me and convince her I’ve moved on so she won’t harass me at the party.” The ‘ _or ever again_ ’ hung silently after Derek had finished speaking. He felt like he was exposed, skin peeled back and heart muscle drying in the room air. Stiles only looked at him seriously; as if in consideration of him. 

“Why is it a big deal to show that you’ve moved on? Most Alpha-Alpha relationships aren’t sustainable for long periods of time. They’re usually pretty volatile.” Stiles asked quietly and without judgment in his voice. Derek sighed, hating himself and hating the idea that he would have to expose his weakness to this stranger in order to appear stronger to his ex-lover. 

“Well, first off it wasn’t an Alpha-Alpha relationship. I’m… I’m an omega.” Derek glanced and saw the faint surprise flit through Stiles' features. He took pleasure in knowing he had fooled one more person into believing he was an Alpha, but now dreaded how Stiles’ opinion would be colored by the revelation. 

“Okay. Yeah, I’m surprised. I’m… wow. I'm sorry about that, man. I didn't mean to assume. It doesn't matter to me at all, and I'm usually better at making sure I don't do that so.... yeah, I'm sorry." He had the decency to blush and look sheepish. Derek didn't blame him though since that was exactly the appearance he was trying to reflect. If he'd had this druthers, he'd have been born an Alpha and spared all these issues. 

"No, it's fine. Thanks for the apology." Derek replied simply, waiting for Stiles to finish what he was saying. 

"So, okay, has she been aggressive towards you since the break-up or… I guess, what about seeing her is so bad that it made you decimate your office furniture?” Stiles asked. Derek sighed and thought about how much to tell Stiles in case he decided to not help him and throw him out on his ear. He didn’t know Stiles and though he felt quite at ease with him, that didn’t mean he could trust him. 

“Throughout our entire relationship Kate made a point of reminding me that I did not meet the current ideal image of an Omega. Per your reaction, that’s fairly obvious. She also made it quite clear through our time together that I was lucky she deigned to give me her love and attention. It came through as a hundred comments about my appearance, taste, and job status. When I broke up with her, she said that I’d never find another alpha to put up with me and that when I came crawling back to her she'd mate me and fix me... She said that no one would want such an atypical Omega like me…. And I have to prove her wrong. Even if it’s just a charade for the event, I have to prove to her that someone else would want me. I know it’s… ridiculous. I know I am worthy of love and someone someday will want me the way I am… but not before this stupid fucking office party and not before I have to face her and her alpha overlord bullshit… er, no offense.” Stiles waved an unconcerned hand over the phrase, so Derek continued. “So I need someone who would be willing to pose as my Alpha for this so I don’t have to hear another fucking word about it from her mouth.” Derek spat out the last part, his claws itching to come out as he fought to keep himself in control. 

“Okay. I can see why you dumped her. She sounds a bit back asswards to the time we’re living in, but won’t she just go after you after the party when we’ve ‘broken up’?” Stiles asked, using his fingers to make air quotations. Derek felt it was a win that he hadn’t called him a dumb, weak Omega and sent him on his way. He sighed heavily, picking himself back up to rest on his elbows as he tried to put Kate’s insanity as succinctly as possible. 

“I don’t think so. She’s pretty territorial. If someone else has ‘been there’ then she won’t want anything to do with it. I wans't a virgin when we met but... but she was the first person to ever spend a heat with me,” Derek explained, looking at Stiles grimly and hoping he read between the lines. 

“Oh…. OH!” Stiles said as he seemed to catch on, looking at Derek with something akin to awe. “Well, I mean, the party doesn’t sound like a hardship to me at all. You’re a super attractive guy and I would be lucky to land someone like you any day of the week. Even if it’s pretend, it’ll certainly bring up my status with the rest of the population.” Stiles grinned at the last part. “But, I got to tell you, if you just go on one date with me to show this bitch up, she’ll sniff it out. If she’s as territorial as you say, I bet she still Facebook stalks you to make sure you haven’t moved on without her. I think this would have to be a full scale lead up to the party. We might even need to keep up the ruse a little while later to a lesser degree so she won’t put two and two together. Are you sure you want to go to all that trouble instead of just taking a sick day for the party?” Stiles asked, leaning closer into Derek space as he held onto his water bottle with both hands. 

Derek looked up and stared into Stiles’ eyes. He took his fill of the honey flecks in the caramel brown. He traced the thick lashes and the earnest expression. He breathed softly through his nose and noted the concern and hopefulness that wafted from Stiles’ chemo-receptors. Somewhere back in his brain he noted that Stiles obviously used scent-neutralizing soap also since he could detect his emotion but not his essence. 

“I’m sure that I don’t want to go through what I went through with her ever again. I want her to get knocked down a peg. It sounds mean and maybe even petty, but she needs to know that she was wrong.” Derek replied, still keeping eye contact with Stiles. Stiles watched his eyes a moment longer, gaze flickering between the two, before he nodded slowly. He licked his lips before he spoke and Derek felt like it was the loudest sound in the room aside from his own heart beating wildly in his chest. 

“When do you want to start?” Stiles asked, smile curling his lips slowly Derek’s face transformed into delighted disbelief in response. 

\--- 

The first part of the plan was simple. Stiles would come over to Derek’s apartment on Sunday after a weekend of not using any scent neutralizing products in order to lightly scent Derek’s couch and possibly Derek. It would be super casual and they’d use the time to flesh out more of the plan to convince the world that Derek had moved on from Kate Argent once and for all. 

Sunday rolled around and Derek felt his skin buzzing with nervous excitement. He’d fixed some sandwiches and a soaked salad for lunch, as well as put together a white wine sangria for them to drink while they plotted and schemed. He wanted to impress Stiles without overwhelming him. Even if this was all for a farce, he wanted Stiles to think well on him after the fact. 

At almost eleven thirty sharp, Derek was bouncing on the balls of his feet in the kitchen when the doorbell rang. Taking a few calming breaths, he waited until Stiles knocked to _leisurely_ make his way to the front door. He opened the door and Stiles’ smiling face stood on the other side. His lips were stretched wide and he looked a little shy with his hands in the pockets of his slim legged jeans. His hair was messy on top which made him look way too young for Derek to be thinking of even fake dating him. He wore a blazer over his hoodie and V-necked tee. Derek smiled and moved aside, mentally screaming at himself for how attractive he was actually finding this alpha right now. How did that happen? He looked like a college student!!! 

“Oh my GOD, dude! How much are they paying you up in finance? I think I got the wrong degree…like twice!” Stiles exclaimed as he made his way into the loft. When Derek had first moved into the building it was dark and ill-boding, but his mom had bought it cheap knowing the neighborhood was coming back into fashion. After she’d given Derek his pick of any apartment in the building, he’d hired an up-in-coming interior designer to mix cozy country and industrial in order to fashion his place. The result was a lot of wood and iron accents on soft creams, greys, and beiges. Stiles set his ever-present messenger bag down against the kitchen island and walked into the open concept living and dining room with his mouth gaping open. Derek preened at how astonished and appreciative Stiles seemed of his place. Kate had always wanted him to chuck all of the hard edges and metal for glass and crystal accents. She said the industrial accents came across as too strong for an Omega. She said he needed to remind people of his orientation, not emphasize the ways he bucked against it. 

“My mom owns the building. I got my pick of the apartments before she fixed up the rest to rent out.” Derek said quietly, smiling when Stiles finally stopped spinning to look at him. A smile was still on his face and Derek kind of wanted to drown in the glow of it. 

“That’s awesome! This place is amazing! I thought I got lucky in the apartment game, but you have got me beat ten-fold!” Derek ducked his head and beamed at the praise. He didn’t know if it was genuine pride he was feeling or just his Omega nature soaking in such blatant approval from an Alpha, but he knew that he liked it either way. 

“Would you like something to drink? I made us something to snack on while we plan.” Derek asked, moving towards the refrigerator. Stiles stood there a moment and just watched him move around the kitchen. Derek preened under his continued attention and found himself smiling as he opened the cabinet to grab plates. The Alpha’s seemingly rapt attention to him made his chest feel tight, but pleasurably so. 

“Uh, sure. Want to eat it on the couch or over here?” Stiles asked, looking between the living room and the island when he finally managed to answer the question. He was shrugging off his blazer and placing it over one of the island stools as he spoke. 

“Let’s eat it in the living room. That way we can spread out if necessary.” Stiles nodded and picked his messenger bag up from the floor to move over to the living room area. Derek plated two sandwiches and a portion of the salad. He moved those over to the coffee table in front of the couch and then returned for the tumblers filled with sangria and silverware. 

“Oh man! You didn’t have to do all this! I would’ve settled for toast and tea.” Stiles said despite picking up the sandwich immediately and taking a giant bite out of it. The groan of appreciation was enough to let Derek know that he did well. 

“Well, I’m glad you seem to like it. It wasn’t any trouble” Derek murmured, smiling into his napkin after a bite of salad. Stiles’ grinned and took another bite of sandwich before putting it down to start digging through his messenger bag. He produced a small, slim laptop and a notebook with post-it’s already sticking out from the sides. Derek sipped his sangria while he watched Stiles’ organize and begin booting up the laptop. 

“So, first things first…” Stiles started once everything was laid out in front of him. He turned in his seat towards Derek and lifted his chin, looking at Derek expectantly. Derek paused with his sandwich midway between his mouth and plate as he stared at the pale, exposed neck in front of him. He knew his pupils had dilated slightly as he stared, motion suspended. After what was probably a pregnant pause while Derek’s brain rebooted, Stiles lowered his chin frowning. 

“I, uh… I figured you’d want to smell me first. You know, make sure you could stand the scent of me before I started rubbing myself all over your furniture and..uh… and, well.. and you.” Stiles stammered out the last part, looking a little unsure when Derek hadn’t immediately jumped to bury his nose against Stiles’ neck. 

“Uh… okay” Derek replied, still stunned. 

Lowering his sandwich back onto his plate, he found himself brushing non-existent crumbs from his pants and hands while he mentally prepared himself for smelling Stiles. He knew it didn’t really matter in the larger sense what Stiles smelled like because this whole thing was a charade. The primal part of him, however, felt differently. Stiles slowly lifted his chin again as Derek began to lean forward, his body on the edge of the couch like he needed to be able to dart away at any moment. Derek wanted to place his hand on the side of Stiles’ neck and steady himself, maybe steady both of them, but he didn’t want to presume that Stiles wanted his touch. He’d given Derek permission to sniff only. Keeping his hands firmly placed in his lap, Derek kept moving forward until his nose was almost directly over Stiles’ pulse point. He let more of his wolf bleed through, knowing his eyes were shining bright blue as he drew in a deep breath of Stiles’ scent. 

Immediately, Derek felt like he was drowning. The smell coming from Stiles filled his body with warmth and clouded his mind. He felt like he was floating in the scent of this Alpha. He breathed in deeply again, his mouth beginning to water like a feast was beneath his lips waiting to be tasted and devoured. His lips parting as his breath came through in barely there pants while his body unconsciously leaning further into the Alpha’s space. A third deep inhale and he felt his nose bump against the warm, smooth skin a couple times while he tried to maintain control and distance. He wanted to lick and bite and rub his face all over that scent. He wanted this to be the scent that he found on his pillow every night. He felt desperate to keep it on him and near him at all times. He swallowed thickly, preparing himself for another ecstatic lungful, when Stiles spoke up again. 

“Do I..uh.. smell alright?” Stiles asked, his voice wobbling slightly. Derek came back to himself then, pulling back quickly and feeling his face heat up. His heart hammered in his chest as he mentally screamed at how inappropriate he’d just been. Omegas weren’t supposed to feel that wantonly towards an Alpha they weren’t mated to…or working towards being mated to. 

“Yeah… You smell good. I think this’ll work.” Derek replied steadily, keeping his eyes on his plate and half eaten sandwich while his hands squeezed together between his knees. 

“Do you mind if I smell you?” Stiles asked next, his voice cautious. Derek’s eyes darted to meet his and he wondered if they were still ringed in blue. He felt slightly crazed and out of control. He feared what he’d do if Stiles got that close to him again, but the other part of him…the part that was crazy and illogical was hoping to find out. 

“Yeah. I mean, yes you can.” Derek replied as evenly as his breathless voice would allow. He stayed as still as he could manage except to tilt his head back and to the side. From the corner of his eye he watched Stiles scoot forward and start to lean in towards him. When Stiles’ head was fit in-between his shoulder and neck, Derek tried to hold his breath but it was impossible. A wisp of Stiles’ scent wafted from his hair along with his styling product. Then Derek was lost again, his body pulling lung full after lung full of the fragrance. He was dimly aware that he was panting. Catching his reflection in the window glass, he could tell that his eyes were burning bright. The hint of red near his collar was the only indication that Stiles was affected by his scent as well. It was a surprise he wasn't choking on the musk of arousal that Derek was sure he was producing. 

“Do you… do you mind if I scent mark you? Just a little… on your neck and, and wrists?” Stiles asked quietly, his breath sending small puffs of air onto Derek’s neck and making his blood boil and rush to his core. 

“No, I don’t mind.” Derek answered, his voice quiet as he tried to steal his body against laying back and opening itself for this near stranger. He tried to calm his heart and the flashes of fantasy that were coming to mind starring himself and Stiles more naked and sliding against one another. Stiles might rub his cheek against Derek's neck or maybe lower... but a cold rush of air brought him back to the present. He had closed his eyes in anticipation of feeling the Alpha’s skin smoothing against his own when a warm hand grasp around his wrist had startled him. He hadn’t expected Stiles to pull away. Eyes popping open he looked over at Stiles who was drawing his hand up towards him. He rubbed Derek’s inner wrist against the sides of his neck and then up to the elbow. His lips looked were close enough he could've kissed Derek's pulse points, but he didn't and Derek felt himself burning from the loss. Redirecting his focus, Derek tried to concentrate on how Stiles felt against the small parts of him he was touching. His skin was smooth and warm and Derek felt that if someone had looked through his window it would look like Stiles was wooing him not unlike Pepe la Pew to Penelope Cat. Derek didn’t feel like running away like Penelope, however, and he wondered only briefly if Stiles was listening to the thundering of his pulse as he repeated the action with the other arm. 

When he was finished, he held each arm briefly under his nose to sniff delicately. Goosebumps erupted over Derek’s body as the small puffs of air tickled his skin. Deciding, Derek supposed, that it was good enough he then brought his hand to the back of Derek’s neck where he gripped him softly and massaged the muscles there. His fingers worked at the tense muscles and slipped up past Derek’s hairline to put gentle pressure on the ridge at the back of his skull. Any other time a neck and scalp massage would have melted Derek into a puddle on the carpet, but as it was he couldn’t have relaxed if you’d paid him. He was keyed up to eleven and trying to work his way back to a manageable five. Stiles was being perfectly respectable and all Derek wanted to do was be ravished and left in a sated heap on the floor next to his Alpha’s feet. 

“I think that’ll do for right now. If you want…” Stiles had to clear his throat, looking slightly embarrassed before he continued. “…if you want, you can come by my office sometime during next week and I can scent you there. I don’t mind.” 

“Uh, okay.” Derek replied, feeling lost again now that Stiles had pulled back and was sitting back on his side of the couch. They sat there in silence for a couple beats before Derek couldn’t handle it any longer. Standing up, he grabbed his plate and glass before heading back to the kitchen. When he got there, he finished off the last few swallows of sangria before refilling his cup to the top. 

“I mean, you don’t have to. I can just come over next weekend and we can keep it to that. I just, you know, thought it would help,” Stiles spoke up from the living room where he was eyeing Derek from over the back of the couch. Derek nodded and sipped his sangria more slowly than he really wanted to. 

“No, I think you’re right. It’ll make it more believable. You should email me a couple times when you know you’ll be free this week and I’ll try to pop down when I can.” Derek thought he sounded even tempered and rational. There might have been a small note of panic in his voice, but he thought hopefully he was the only one to notice it. The space between them was helping to clear Derek’s nose of Stiles’ scent enough for him to think clearly again. Stiles nodded and looked at Derek. Derek felt like he was forgetting something important, but between his heart still beating wildly and his rising embarrassment over the situation, he could not remember what that thing was. 

“So I’m just going to hang out on your couch for a while. Do you mind if I just watch TV or something?” Stiles asked, pointing towards the empty space where Derek had been moments earlier. 

“Uh no, go for it. Do you need me to, uh…” Derek trailed off as Stiles’ slipped off his hoodie and revealed his surprisingly well-defined arms barely covered by the short sleeves of his V-neck. 

“Oh no, you go ahead and do whatever. I’m just going to get some of my scent on your cushions here for like an hour or two and then I’ll be out of your hair. Next weekend you should come to by my place to do something similar. If I think of any better ideas in the meantime I’ll let you know.” Stiles asked as he moved to lie across Derek’s sofa. Derek had been slowly moving out from behind the island to watch Stiles settle himself. He clutched the sangria in his hand like it was an anchor, but when Stiles reached out to grab the remote and his shirt lifted just slightly to show a strip of skin above his waistband Derek tipped back his head and finished it off in a gulp. Putting down the glass, he abruptly turned on his heel and headed towards the spiral staircase that lead to the upstairs area of the loft. He’d seen enough, thanks. At this point, he was just torturing himself. 

Derek held his breath until he had firmly closed the doors to his bedroom behind him. He leaned back and let the trapped air escape finally, taking refuge in the cold metal beneath his hands as he waited for his heart to calm down. He knew this was the plan and it was all going accordingly, but he didn’t expect his body’s reaction to Stiles’ scent. He was suddenly feeling a little unsure that what he was doing. It was just the beginning and he already felt compromised. 

Walking forward, he let himself tip forward into his bedspread the moment his knees hit his mattress. He crawled up the bed and buried his head under one of the pillows, breathing in the clean cotton scent of his sheets as he tried to gather his wits. Stiles would only be here for a little while longer. It was worth these mixed feelings to never have to spend another heat wondering if he’d be taken care of by Kate Argent and his sadistic, controlling Alpha bullshit. He didn’t need to worry. His body might react to Stiles’ scent, but he wouldn’t go into heat from it no matter how many times he filled his lungs with it. He’d already been put on suppressants so the next time his body was scheduled to flush with mating hormones, it would instead only flush with cramps and cravings for naps and chocolate. He would get through this. He could get through this… 

A tentative knock came through the door jolting Derek awake. He didn’t know when he’d fallen asleep, but it felt weird to know that he’d let himself be that vulnerable with a relative stranger in his home.

“Hey Derek, I’m going to head out…” Stiles voice called from the other side of the door. Derek dragged himself off the bed and opened the bedroom door enough to squeeze through into the hallway with Stiles. He wasn’t ready for Stiles' scent to be in that room. He didn’t know if he could handle it yet. 

“Okay. Sorry I dozed off. I didn’t mean to be rude…” He was blushing and fidgeting and he kind of hated himself for it. It wasn’t like Stiles needed him to pay attention to him while he watched TV. 

“Oh, it’s okay. I grabbed a cat nap myself. That’s an amazingly comfy couch you have there. I just woke up and didn’t want to leave without telling you. I’m sure you’d want to lock the door after me and such.” Stiles was grinning at him. Derek didn’t feel mentally prepared for that smile after he’d just woken up. Trying to smile back, Derek nodded and proceeded to lead Stiles back towards the front door. Before Stiles could get completely through however, he turned and looked at Derek with that same grin. 

“Tuesday.” He started and Derek quirked an eyebrow at him so he’d continue. “I have some time after about ten that should be free. You could come by and we could go to lunch or just eat lunch in my office or something. You can email if you aren’t free, but it would be a good idea for us to be seen together maybe a couple times this week.” 

Derek felt himself nodding along. He had no clue what was on his schedule to Tuesday. Probably a lot of boring meetings. 

“I’ll look at my schedule and text you. I really don’t know what is scheduled for Tuesday in my department. Nothing big, but I’ll let you know once I get a look at it.” Derek was rubbing a hand over his face, trying to wake up some more. To say that he wasn’t a morning person was beyond an understatement. Even naps left him relatively groggy for at least an hour. Stiles’ smile only widened sweetly as he watched. 

“Okay” he said softly, turning to leave. Derek stood and watched him walk away, wondering if he’d turn for a last look. He did, the grin still in place and a casual wave coming from over his shoulder. Derek smiled back and closed the door, turning the deadbolt first out of habit. He was pretty sure he was _fucked_. This is what fucked felt like. 

“Oh, damnit.” He sighed, bumping his head against the door frame after he heard the ping and slide of the elevator doors closing in the hallway. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You can check out my stuff and my at [ my tumblr, SkinSharpenedTeeth ](http://skinsharpenedteeth.tumblr.com) any time. I take prompts and I like talking to folks about Sterek.   
> Comments and kudos are always welcome and help me get out of bed in the morning to continue writing. Thank you! :)


	4. Chapter Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Scenting, y'all.

Tuesday came and went without Derek visiting Stiles’ office. If he was honest with himself, he’d admit that he was nervous at the idea of being scented in the office while he was getting paid. He also hadn’t stopped using his scent neutralizing products. He hadn’t let Stiles’ know he wasn’t going to show either. He knew his real problem lay in fear. He didn’t want people to be able to smell him. His scent was quite light and smelled more like coconut and macadamia nut cookies than the spicier, heavier scents of most Alphas. So it was Thursday before a message popped up on his work e-mail from Stiles. 

\----- **From: Dr. S. G. Stilinski**  
**To: Derek Hale**

**Subject: Re: Office Visit**

Mr. Hale, 

In regards to your recent missed appointment on Tuesday, we would like to reschedule for you to come by today around the same time as previously discussed. If you cannot come to us, we would be glad to come visit you at your office at your convenience. If the issue from your last office visit has resolved itself or if you no longer require our assistance, please let us know as soon as possible so that we can cease unnecessary correspondence and leave you in peace. 

**Sincerely,**  
**_Dr. S. G. Stilinski_**

\-------

Derek stared at the e-mail. He knew snooty office reprimand language better than anyone and what he just received was the professional equivalent of “Why didn’t you call me after that one special night together? You CAD!” Feeling weary, but chastened Derek thought of how best to soothe Stiles without losing the formality of the e-mail. Derek found himself smiling slightly in appreciation that Stiles had been able to keep the e-mail so professional and vague. If anyone were reading it, they wouldn’t really know what it was concerning or what had been discussed. Derek could push it off to mean anything. As he clicked the reply button and found himself almost excited at how he was going to politely phrase his apology. 

\------- **From: Derek Hale**  
**To: Dr. S.G. Stilinski**

**Subject: RE: Re: Office Visit**

Dr. Stilinski, 

Thank you for inquiring after my missed appointment. I apologize for not formally canceling for Tuesday but due to unforeseen issues, I was unable to get away from my office to come visit you at yours. The issue previously discussed has not resolved itself and continues to burden me. If you would be so kind as to come to my office around two this afternoon (if convenient), we can discuss further the immediate plans for resolution. Thank you for your e-mail and I hope to see you later today. Thank you again for your patience and understanding. 

**Sincerely,**  
**_Derek Hale_**

\-------

As soon as he hit send, he felt relief. If Stiles were to meet him up here, he’d feel much more comfortable to discuss alternative plans for scenting. His computer dinged moments later just as he was getting back to work. He clicked on the incoming e-mail to see Stiles had already responded. 

\------- **From: Dr. S. G. Stilinski**  
**To: Derek Hale**

**Subject: RE: RE: Re: Office Visit**

Derek, 

That happens to be my regular coffee hour, but I would be more than happy to conclude that happy event while in your office so that we can discuss the burdensome issue mentioned previously. Please be aware that I can only block off an hour for this interaction at most. Thank you for your prompt reply. See you at two in your office. 

**Sincerely,**  
**_Dr. S. G. Stilinski_**

**_P.S. I am especially fond of the large cold brew house blend (no room for cream/sugar) from the ground floor café. Their shortbread and blueberry jam cookies are also quite lovely._**

\--------

Derek laughed out loud at the impertinence of the post script. Apparently, Stiles was going to make him do some extra leg work for his forgiveness. While it might have annoyed Derek if another Alpha had tried to con him out of coffee and baked goods, he felt himself rather pleased that Stiles wasn’t afraid to push back at him. He’d acquiesced to meeting in Derek's office at a later time, but the price was pastry and caffeine. Shaking his head, but still smiling Derek picked up his office phone and dialed the extension for Isaac. 

“Hey-OH!” Isaac chirped over the receiver. Derek rolled his eyes in mock exasperation. 

“You should probably answer the phone a little more professionally, Isaac,” Derek grumbled, trying to sound stern past his grin. 

“I wonder why you think I don’t have your extension memorized? I mean, sure you don’t call me often, but when you do it’s a small treat in my otherwise dower day,” Isaac teased. 

“What’s got you in such a good mood?” 

“Oh nothing, just a hot date with the Alpha of my dreams this weekend.” 

“Allison?” A frown formed on Derek’s face as he tried to draw up what he remembered about the brunette Alpha from marketing. 

“None other!” Isaac crowed over the phone. Derek could practically see him prancing around like a peacock outside some poor office worker’s cubicle, completely unfazed by the spectacle he surely made. 

“Well, congratulations then.” Derek responded evenly. He thought he remembered Allison being linked to another Alpha from Argent-Ware, but they may have ended it. He’d have to do some subtle digging to make sure Isaac wasn’t getting played for a fool. 

“Thank you! So now what do I owe the pleasure of this phone call to?” Isaac asked, smile shining through the line at Derek. It was probably a good time to ask him for the favor Derek had in mind since he was feeling so high in spirits. 

“Stiles, actually. He’s coming to my office in a couple hours and I’ve got some work to get through before then. I was going to see if you had any time to run down to the ground floor café to get us some coffee and food. If you can’t it’s fine. I’ll try to get down, but it would really be doing me a favor.” Derek asked. There was only a brief pause on the line where Derek imagined Isaac running through his list of duties for the rest of the day. 

“No man, it’s fine. E-mail me a list of what you want me to grab and I’ll pick it up. What time is he coming by?” Isaac asked. Derek told him and assured him he’d have a list sent to his inbox shortly. Hanging up the phone Derek tried to get through his days tasks. If there was a small smile pulling at the corners of his mouth while he did so, no one was there to see it so he didn’t have to hide it. 

\---- 

Looking over his office coffee table, Derek admitted that sending Isaac on a mission while in the throes of jubilation may not have been his best idea. The little table was packed with more than just two iced coffees and shortbread cookies. Isaac had bought a few mini-cupcakes, some hand pies, brought a carafe with hot coffee, cream and sugar housed in the hoity-toity dispensers from the board room, and arranged it so to make Derek look like having Stiles come up was a capital-B Big Deal. There were even two little sandwich plates with napkins and forks for their disposal. Sighing, Derek thanked the gods for such a good friend even as he felt the dread of impending embarrassment settle over him. 

“Thank you, Isaac. It looks really well-done. It’s a little more than I asked for though…” Derek commented, looking over at a still ecstatic Isaac. He was practically vibrating with anticipated joy. 

“I know, I know! I just got down there and I thought about how nice it would be to have a little set up since you guys are supposed to be on the verge of a budding romance. I guess it’s a little over the top, but it just felt so nice to put it together and know that you could possibly be happy someday like I’m happy right now and I wanted you to have nice things. You deserve nice things, Derek.” The last part was added sternly, Isaac rounding on him with a serious expression. Derek smiled and nodded. 

“I know. I’ll get them someday. Thank you, buddy.” Derek replied, clapping Isaac on the shoulder and sharing an appreciative grin before beginning to turn him towards the office door. “Now go spread your joy to the rest of the company. Stiles should be arriving –“ 

“Now? Is now okay?” Stiles dark hair pushed past the doorway and his mouth stretched in a nervous grin. “Cause I know I’m a little early, but I was just cooling my heels downstairs.” 

Isaac and Derek shared a look before Isaac’s grin grew tenfold and he excused himself to edge around Stiles in the office door. Derek waved Stiles into his office and Stiles complied, dragging his messenger bag behind him. 

“Oh wow! This is wonderful! Seriously, a missed office visit is not worth the set up you have here! This is wonderful though, thank you!” Stiles praised, eyes lighting on all the baked goods and caffeinated beverages at his disposal. 

“Part of that is Isaac. I asked him to help me out by grabbing some stuff from the café downstairs while I was in a meeting and he went a little overboard. It _is_ nice though. But I wouldn’t attribute it all to me.” Derek responded a little shyly. It was a fairly grand display after all.

“Well, he’s going to make someone very happy someday. Good mercy, he even got the hand pies! These are the absolute best!” Stiles added, picking one up and taking a bite before he even set down his bag. The golden flakey crust left crumbs over his lips that Derek couldn’t deny filled his head with dirty thoughts. Stiles’ lips alone could keep his fantasy life well-endowed for years to come. Then Stiles let out a sound. It was somewhere between a moan and a groan. His eyes closed in apparent ecstasy at whatever flavor was hitting his tongue. 

“Oh God, Derek. They’re the pumpkin ones! Ungh! These. Are. The. Best!” Derek felt it was a good thing that Stiles’ eyes were shut in apparent euphoria since Derek himself was having issues with his pants. Blood suffused his cheeks and neck as he sank down into the two-seater couch. He dared to try looking up at Stiles to see if he was finished to find out that he was now eye level with Stiles hips and more importantly the enhanced bulge that was not there when Stiles had come in. Derek threw his eyes down to the ground as he felt himself imagining very unprofessional things he could say and do with Stiles in this very office. Meanwhile, Stiles went on unaware of how his display was affecting Derek and Derek tried to busy himself with loading up one of the small plates with one of everything before reaching for his iced coffee. 

“Man!” Stiles said finally, when he all but collapsed next to Derek on the two-seater. Derek looked at him in horror when he realized Stiles meant to share the sofa with him. Most people understood that a two-seater was for one person only unless you were mated or there was absolutely nowhere else to sit. You didn’t sit there with another unmated wolf if there were other seats to be taken. Especially if you were an Alpha and the other wolf was an Omega. “Sorry about that. It has been a _long_ time since I had one of the pumpkin hand pies. They are seriously my favorite thing on Earth.” 

“It’s no problem.” Derek murmured quietly, watching Stiles attention shift over to unloading the things from his bag. 

“So I guess the first thing we should do is you need to add me on Facebook and Instagram.” Stiles started. on Facebook and Instagram.” Stiles started. 

“I don’t have Instagram.” Derek cut in, blushing for some reason he couldn’t fathom. 

“That’s okay. We can make you one or we can just use mine.” Stiles said, clapping Derek on the shoulder before turning back to his laptop and typing in Derek’s name into the search bar for Facebook. Derek watched as he requested his friendship and then updated his status all in a whirl of fingers. 

**_Hanging out with a new friend today. Can we talk about gorgeous people who give you nice things?_** Stiles typed into the status bar. Derek felt his blush rising again at the compliment. Before he could completely calm his thumping heart, Stiles turned to him and gave him a wide, open smile. 

“Alright. You should have a request waiting for you when you get on facebook next. May I suggest sooner than later because I’m going to making a lot of vague but leading comments about our interactions from here on forward. Also, I’m working on checking out Kate Argent a little more through various connections so I can tailor this plan a little better. Do you want to get on to the scenting thing?” All this came out in a rush and Derek felt an edge of being overwhelmed in the background of his mind. 

“Actually…” Derek started, swallowing thickly. He looked down at this hands which gripped the tiny plate with his untouched treats tightly. Quickly putting the plate down on his coffee table, he smoothed his hands down his slacks and tried to fortify himself. 

“We don’t have to do that here if you don’t want to, Der.” Stiles offered before Derek could continue. “I noticed that you are still using the scent neutralizer. Is that why you missed Tuesday?” 

“Yeah…” Derek breathed, tension draining from him at the admission. “Yeah, I… uh, I really don’t want to come to work smelling like… Omega. I mean, I don’t mind us scenting away from here, but I really don’t want to do it in our offices. Is that okay?” 

“Well, I mean I can understand why you’d feel like that, but can I say that there is nothing wrong with your natural scent. It’s…amazing, if I’m honest. But, once we start scenting more hardcore then my Alpha scent will mix with your Omega scent and if someone smells you, it will just be as a wolf having close personal connections with another. They’ll co-mingle, if you will. They’ll create an “us” scent instead of a “you” versus “me” scent. So, I think we still need to work towards that end. But I can understand not wanting to do it here.” 

“So what do you suggest?” Derek asked, a little latent embarrassment still lingering as well as fear at having an ‘us’ scent with anyone. He didn’t want to be bonded or mated. He just needed to prove to Kate that he wasn’t with her anymore. 

“Well, we can clothes share. That’s the easiest way. I mean, I don’t have a ton of stuff that will fit you, but I can also just give you a pair of bedsheets that are a couple days old and that might help too. At some point we might actually have to touch though, in order to really saturate each other. It doesn’t have to be sexual!” Stiles added quickly at Derek’s raised eyebrows. “And it doesn’t have to be right away. But at some point we’re going to be taking pictures together anyway, so we might as well get used to touching.” 

Derek nodded, sipping his iced coffee more for something to do than out of thirst. Stiles was watching him while he processed through all that information. They’d have to share. They’d have to touch. They’d have to take pictures… it all felt like a disastrous cocktail for Derek’s already burgeoning crush on the Alpha. _’Kate,’_ Derek thought to himself. _‘You’ll never have to hear from her again if you just muscle through this.’_

“What are you doing this evening?” Derek asked suddenly, seeming to jolt Stiles out of his own train of thought. 

“Uh… no real plans?” 

“Come to the gym with me after work. I can give you the shirt I work out in or something.” Stiles nodded, seeming to think it over. 

“Sounds good. I can give you mine as well. That’ll help the process along.” Stiles beamed his smile back at Derek and again he felt his heart flutter and his gut tighten. This was such a bad idea, it might actually work. 

\--- 

They met up at the office gym around 6. Stiles was already dressed out in knit shorts and a baggy t-shirt with running shoes. He met Derek at his locker and leaned casually to one side of it talking about his annoyance at having to put in his rut forms in at the last minute. Derek was standing there shirtless, a quirked eyebrow in Stiles direction as he hung his work shirt and jacket inside the locker. Stiles flushed, a little embarrassed. 

“My cycle is completely irregular. It always has been. I usually only get a few days warning at best. Sometimes I don’t know until the morning it’s starting. It’s super annoying, but I’m allergic to a lot of the suppressants on the market so I just have to work around it as best as I can.” He finished with a shrug. Derek glanced down towards Stiles’ crotch at the mention of ‘rut’ and noticed once again that he seemed generously endowed at the moment. There wasn’t a long line of a hard cock or anything that Derek could make out definitively, but the area looked more pronounced than what he would think of as normal. Not that he would know what was normal. He didn’t stare at Stiles’ crotch constantly, but he may have noticed it with his usual sweep from head to toe. He certainly didn’t remember it being so pronounced the last few times he’d met with Stiles. Derek snorted at himself for being so ridiculous and bent over to unlace his oxfords before beginning to work on taking off his slacks and hanging them. 

“That sucks.” Derek offered, turning and reaching into his bag for his compression shorts and tank top. He stripped off his underwear and looked over his shoulder in wonder at the strangled squeak he heard from behind him. Stiles was staring raptly at his bare ass where he was slightly bent over to rifle through his bag. Blushing, Derek shifted his body to where it didn’t seem quite like he was trying to tease Stiles with a presentation. He didn’t think of it very often since most Alpha’s saw him as another Alpha and didn’t feel any attraction to him, but Stiles knew the truth and Derek didn’t want to cross that line with him. ‘ _Yet…_ ’, his brain silently added for him. Grimacing at that train of thought he quickly pulled on his shorts on and stood up, pulling his tank over his head next. 

“Sorry” Derek apologized, turning and pulling his iPod and ear buds from his locker next. 

“No, I’m sorry. That was inappropriate.” Stiles apologized, trying to smile weakly even though Derek could already see the sweat beginning to dew at his temples. 

“You sure you can hang today? You’re not too close?” Derek asked, trying to give Stiles an out. 

“No, yeah, I’m fine. I’m just going to run today. Get some extra energy out of my limbs.” Stiles smiled and began to bounce on his feet and shake out his arms in emphasis. 

“Alright. Well, I’m going to run a little, but it’s my leg day so I’ll mostly be over at the weights. If you want to leave early, you can just shove your shirt in my locker here and grab something out my bag until I can get something to you.” 

“Sounds good” Stiles replied breathlessly. They walked out to the floor and over towards the rows of treadmills. Stiles picked one towards the back while Derek went ahead and picked one on the front row. Pushing ‘play’ on his iPod, he began the process of tuning out the rest of the world while he warmed up his muscles. He ran a couple miles on the treadmill before switching it off and walking over towards one of the leg presses. He caught sight of Stiles after a minute on another treadmill closer to the weight room. When their eyes met, Stiles waved and smiled even as he continued to run. He seemed to be keeping a good pace and Derek quickly started working the press with his legs to stop himself from memorizing the flush pattern on Stiles’ skin. 

It didn’t take long for Derek to get ‘in the zone’. He pushed his muscles hard and switched machines often, doing an interval routine he’d had an Omega bodybuilder teach him bulk up. He didn’t see Stiles again until he was taking a break between reps at the thigh press. Stiles lithe form appeared, hovering almost in between the press bars for his thighs as Derek swallowed down the lukewarm water from his bottle. He stared up at Stiles from where he sat, waiting for him to speak. Derek felt acutely aware that he was laying half repose with his thighs wide open in front of an Alpha on the precipice of rut. His natural smell was wafting warmly towards Derek’s nose and Derek had no illusions that his own scent wasn’t doing the same. His tank was soaked and he knew when he got up from the bench he’d have to wipe off the sweat imprint from his body on the machine. Stiles could smell him as well if the blown pupils and hungry expression were anything to go off of. Stiles looked like he’d run a hose over his body, the shirt practically dripping with his sweat. It smelled like coffee and salt and caramel. Stiles eyes seemed trapped by the sight of Derek’s legs spread, thighs wet with sweat and shorts riding tight against his body. 

“Stiles, are you okay?” Derek asked, his muscles tensing to pull the weights towards each other in order to close his legs if he had to. Stiles shook his head as if coming out of a daze and blushed furiously. 

“Sorry, I… I think my rut is coming on faster than I thought. I have to leave. I’ll, uh… leave my shirt in your locker. Sound good?” Stiles asked out in a gust of breath. Derek’s eyes flicked down and he could definitely tell now that Stiles was turned on. He felt his body instinctively shift on the machine as if there was a similar itch under his skin. He stopped himself from the movement when he glanced back up at Stiles who looked like he was trying not to breathe unless he had to. Right. Public. Not real. Derek swallowed his disappointment and cleared his throat before nodding towards Stiles. He watched as Stiles turned and walked quickly towards the locker room. Relaxing, he stared angrily at the ceiling at how wanton he’d just acted. He added another ten pounds for his next two reps as punishment. 

When he got to the locker room much later, he grabbed his towel and tried to ignore the delicious scent wafting from the inside of his gym bag. He wondered briefly what Stiles had taken as he went through the motions of cleaning himself off under the warm shower spray. It didn’t take long to discover it as he searched frantically for his underwear to put on under his sweats. Standing up, he closed his eyes and took a calming breath through his nose. He knew Stiles was on the cusp of rut. This really wasn’t that big of a sacrifice. He only had to get to his car and then to his apartment sans underwear. It wasn’t a big deal. 

It wasn’t a big deal until he caught his reflection leaving the locker room and could faintly see the outline of his own cock through the material of his sweats. Whimpering, he maneuvered the gym bag to hang across his body and in front of his groin before rushing across the lobby of the gym and towards the corporate parking deck. He did not need this kind of hassle in his life! Digging out his phone, he shot off a text at Stiles as soon as he was in the safety of his own car. 

**Derek (sent): You didn’t have to take my underwear, asshole! That was uncalled for!**

Derek tried to calm his breath as he waited, but as soon as he saw the dancing ellipses on his phone he felt his ire rising again as he waited for Stiles’ response. 

**Stiles (received): I didn’t realize that’s what I grabbed until you said something! OMG I’m so sorry, Derek. That was completely unintentional. I was so desperate to get out of there I just kind of shoved my hand in your bag and grabbed the first thing I felt. I’ll return them to you in a couple days when I get out of rut. As it is, I’m not sure I can be around you without embarrassing myself. You smell really, really good to me.**

Derek wasn’t sure if that was a come-on or if Stiles was just being honest. He didn’t know how he felt about the idea of Stiles having a pair of his underwear while he was in rut. He wasn’t sure he wanted the underwear back either. When he thought about Stiles getting off using the scent of his underwear while he was half out of his mind with hormones… Shaking his head, he blushed and shifted minutely in his seat. He couldn’t think about that now. He needed to get home and get to bed. He needed to get some underwear on. The soft material on the inside of his sweats were doing nothing to help dispel the thoughts of Stiles in rut with his _used_ underwear nearby. 

“Unnnggg” Derek moaned, half in agony and half in lust. “Stop thinking and go home. He is not your Alpha. You need to stop thinking of him like that.” 

Shifting into reverse, Derek finally left the garage and started home. The dirty, secret part of him kept sending him cock-twitching snippets of what Stiles might look like right then, what he might be doing with Derek’s underwear…. The level-headed part of him kept trying to shut it down even as his body kept betraying his intentions. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You can check out my stuff and my at [ my tumblr, SkinSharpenedTeeth ](http://skinsharpenedteeth.tumblr.com) any time. I take prompts and I like talking to folks about Sterek.  
> Comments and kudos are always welcome and help me get out of bed in the morning to continue writing. Thank you! :)


	5. Chapter Four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More intense scenting and picture taking.

**Stiles (received): Hey, my rut is pretty much finished. Do you want go somewhere public and hang out for the afternoon? I want to give my place a chance to air out before you come over here if that’s cool.**

Derek looked over the text message blearily with only one eye open. It was Sunday and he was trying to soak in the last few hours of his weekend. Heaving a sigh, he turned and rubbed his face into his pillow to try and wake himself up some more before rolling onto his back and re-reading the text message. 

**Derek (sent): Sure. Where and what time?**

Just thinking about getting out of bed was making Derek yawn and wish he could turn back over. As it was, he threw back the covers and pulled himself off the mattress. He squinted towards the bathroom, stumbling slightly on his way and trying to shield his eyes from the morning light with his hands. When he’d finished, he scooped up his phone from the bed and stomped ungracefully downstairs to get coffee started. To say he wasn’t a morning person would be an understatement in the supreme. 

He didn’t hear back from Stiles until halfway through his first cup of coffee which was probably more of a mercy than Stiles understood.

**Stiles (received): Fox and Hound on 5th. Meet you there about one?**   
**Derek (sent): Okay. See you then.**

Derek felt his stomach flutter briefly at the thought of seeing Stiles after a rut. He appreciated the Alpha’s deference to him in letting his apartment air out. Even if Derek did find Stiles’ smell to be luscious at times, after three days of breeding hormones and sex (whether alone or otherwise, Derek didn’t know) it was bound to be quite ripe. Sighing, he continued his way through the pot of coffee while trying to plan an outfit in his head. He knew it technically didn’t matter, but if he were going to meet an Alpha he was interested in mating with then what would he wear? Would he go softer to show off his Omega-hood or would he wear what was comfortable and he felt confident in? 

By the time he was ready to dress he’d decided to wear something he felt confident in. Stiles already knew he was an atypical Omega. He didn’t need to put his pearls on just to impress him so he kept it simple with a tight, v-neck tee and well-fit blue jeans. Maybe it was almost too casual, but he knew Fox and Hound and it wasn’t the type of place you wore a blazer. Walking through the door twenty minutes later confirmed his suspicions as there couldn’t have been more than five people in the whole establishment including the bartender and waitress. 

Stiles was sitting with his back to Derek in a semi-circle booth with his shoulders hunched. Derek could smell him from the entrance, a good fifteen feet away, and he had to steel himself against purring at how it affected him. Taking slow, even breaths to match his steps he made his way over to the booth. Stiles glanced over his shoulder at him as he approached. The weary expression he’d been wearing vanished as his eyes seemed to trace Derek from head to toe and back over again. His mouth hung slightly open and Derek couldn’t help but smirk as he sat down across from him in the booth. Stiles swallowed thickly before dropping his sandwich back onto his plate and wiping his hands on his napkin. Standing up, he walked over to Derek’s side of the booth and nudged him until he scooted further in so that he could sit pressed against his side. Derek felt his skin flush at the warm, solid presence of Stiles body pressed against him. The slight tremor in his muscles was the only other show of strain towards sitting so close to Stiles. He wanted to press against him harder, wanted to sink into his smell and warmth. He could feel himself winding up and relaxing at the same time being so near. 

“Hi,” Derek squeaked, his voice coming out slightly choked as Stiles began to pull his plate and utensils over the table to his new spot right next to Derek. Derek looked down at the plate and saw that Stiles was eating a cheeseburger loaded with ham, bacon, and a runny egg. He seemed to be working through it with gusto. When Stiles continued to sit silently next to Derek, Derek settled in to wait. He knew how heats went. Sometimes you just needed a minute to regroup before being social. Luckily, the waitress came by to drop off more food for Stiles and took his drink and food order. He looked at the piles of food on the table. It seemed Stiles had ordered chicken and waffles, curly fries with cheese sauce and banana peppers, and an enchilada stack. Derek reached forward to snag a curly fry and Stiles growled in warning. 

“Oh no, you’re not pulling that shit. You asked me out here, you’re sharing your fries, buddy.” Derek snapped back, meeting Stiles’ eyes. Stiles whined in response, leaning heavily against Derek and nuzzling his shoulder with the side of his head as he continued to chew his burger. Derek sighed and ate the cheese fry quietly. 

Stiles didn’t regain the power of speech until he had finished his burger and gotten a few bites into his enchiladas. 

“I’m sorry about this. This rut really took a lot out of me. I feel like I’m all bones right now.” Stiles complained through his mouth of food. Derek nodded and continued stealing cheese fries even though his own club sandwich and beer had arrived. They ate in silence until Stiles miraculously finished all his food. As the plates were cleared, they held their beers and sat companionably pressed against each other in the booth. 

“So I was thinking today we could take some cutesy pictures to post on Facebook. Then we can head to my place and I can give you my sheets or something so you can have some residual scent when I’m not able to see you. Do you play pool?” Stiles asked, watching Derek’s reactions. 

“Yeah, I’m okay at it.” Derek replied, smiling dangerously. Stiles watched him and gasped. 

“You’re a SHARK, aren’t you?” Stiles asked. 

“You won’t know 'til you swim with me.” Derek teased, bumping Stiles with his shoulder. 

“Challenge accepted!” Stiles announced, shifting as if he was going to stand but stopping abruptly. “In a minute. Gotta digest first. Good god, what all did I eat?” 

“Everything.” 

“Hey sir, no sass. I’m suffering over here.” Stiles said miserably, head falling onto his folded arms. Derek made fake conciliatory noises while rubbing circles between Stiles shoulder blades. It hit him that he was having fun. He was touching Stiles and hanging out and it was nice. 

“Okay that was nice, but now we have shit to do.” Stiles cried, sitting up suddenly. He dug his phone out of his pants pocket and immediately turned on the camera. “Alright, get over here and take selfies with me!” 

“Ugh, really?” Derek asked even as Stiles’ squeezed the capture button. 

“Oooo, the murder brows I fell in lust with. Keep glaring at me angrily while I do sweet things to you.” Stiles teased. 

“What?” Derek asked, but was too late. Stiles lips were pressed against his cheek and the picture was taken. Derek flushed, cheek tingling where Stiles’ lips had been. Another picture. The next one wasn’t as sweet as Stiles licked his cheek and caused him to jump back in disgust and alarm. 

“Uggghhh! Photo session over! Gross” Derek said as he wiped his cheek off with the back of his forearm. He pushed Stiles away from him and out of the booth. Stiles fell to the ground and was cackling so hard he could barely stand from where Derek had dumped him. Derek scooted to the edge of the booth and stepped over him, only pausing to grab his beer before heading over to where the pool tables were waiting. Stiles seemed to collect himself finally and went to check out balls and cues before heading back over to where Derek was leaned up against the wall, still chuckling occasionally every time Derek shot him a dirty look. 

“Do you wanna break or rack?” Stiles asked sweetly, offering him a cue. 

“I’ll rack ‘em. You break.” Derek answered, taking one last swig of beer before taking the balls from Stiles and moving to the opposite end of the pool table. 

\---- 

After beating Stiles four times in a row, they decided it was time to head back to Stiles’ apartment. Stiles had managed to take tons of pictures and had forced Derek into another selfie session after the last game as they stood on the street outside of the bar. Stiles typed in his address into Derek’s GPS and handed his phone back to him with a playful grin. 

“So I guess I’ll see you in a few, huh?” he quipped, squinting at Derek like he was the sun. 

“Yeah, sure. Sounds good.” Derek commented, looking down to his already darkened phone out of awkwardness. 

“Okay. See you there.” Derek felt Stiles arms go around him in a brief, tight squeeze before he was gone, walking around the corner of the building towards his car presumably. Derek smiled and watched him leave, thinking how easy the plan had been going thus far. Waking his phone, he swiped onto the GPS app. Pushing the ‘Start’ key he began to fish out his keys and turned towards his car. 

“Walk twenty feet to the corner of Stark and Mayweather. Turn Right onto Mayweather.” Derek started and looked down at the phone in confusion. Stiles’ had set it for walking directions. Pouting in confusion, Derek left the keys where they were in his pocket and began to walk. As soon as he started down Mayweather the voice spoke up again. 

“You have arrived!” his GPS chirped cheerily. Looking up, Stiles stood in a doorway grinning down at him. 

“Glad you found it.” 

“You little shit.” Derek replied, laughing as he walked up the short stairway to where Stiles was waiting by the door. 

“Yeah, but I’m a cute little shit. Come on, let’s show you my place.” Stiles smirked, reaching out and grabbing Derek by the hand to pull him into the dim hallway of his apartment building. The hallway revealed an old elevator and two doors with apartment numbers on them. Stiles lead Derek down to the last door, grin turning nervous the closer the got to the apartment. 

Laughing over his shoulder, Stiles led Derek towards the front door of his apartment. Derek followed, a smile still playing on his lips as he stepped past Stiles into the dim entryway. Immediately the smell of Stiles' pheromones punched through his body sending a low dull throb through his core. Even though he could feel the slight breeze from all the open windows, the Alpha's scent still clung to everything. Derek found himself lost in the warm, instinctual comfort found in such a strong, dominant scent as well as enticed to find the place where it was richest so he could burrow in and mix his own scent with it. Stiles had continued into through to another room, his voice echoing back towards Derek from some unseen place. Derek tried to follow his nose, eyes almost completely shut as he walked through to where Stiles' scent was the strongest. 

When he opened his eyes, he found not the Alpha, but the Alpha's bed. The mattress was bare, sheets no doubt in the washer, but the pillows still had their cases. Opening his lungs, Derek pulled in the rich smell again even though he knew he should be looking for Stiles. It filled his chest, seeming to go through his lungs and into his muscles. 

"Uh Der?" Stiles voice sounded behind him, causing Derek to almost choke on air as he spun to look guiltily at Stiles' grinning face. "The living room is over here." 

"Yes, sorry. I lost you for a moment. I was trying to find you by smell." Derek explained, blush burning through his cheeks. Stiles just smiled wider at the news and clapped a hand warmly on Derek's bicep. 

"You probably found more of me than you wanted. Here, let's go to the living room where the smell isn't quite so... pungent." Stiles pulled him from the room slowly, leading him back down the hallway Derek hadn't even noticed before. It was dark and lined with more prints and paintings.

When they entered through into the living room Derek had to stop and stare. How Stiles could be jealous of his apartment was a mystery because his was practically a living thing! Like his own, there was exposed brick along the outer walls and a large wall of windows to shed plenty of light into the living space. Unlike his, Stiles had a small enclosed courtyard where he'd created a green space full of plants and small trees. He had plants in the apartment too, tendrils of green draped over exposed rafters and down the sides of bookcases. His apartment felt like a bohemian paradise. There were books stacked everywhere, records and CD's, colored rugs and different textured pillows along the long, sleep leather furniture. Plants sat in pots and on table tops throughout. The kitchen looked into the living room like his own, but it was small and as eclectic as the living room. No appliances matched, but somehow worked together to create a pleasing aesthetic. 

Stiles kept pulling on Derek's arm as he led him to the sofa. The windows into the courtyard were open as well as the door and a breeze shifted through the room rustling the leaves and making Derek feel like fuzzy headed and content. He plopped down in the center of the long, low sofa and smiled contently. Stiles wandered behind him into the kitchen, opening and closing cabinet doors. 

"Do you want something to drink?" He called, jarring Derek out of his thoughts and back to the present. 

"Sure. Just water will be fine." 

"Lucky for you, I have that in spades my friend. The finest a tap can offer." Stiles joked, grabbing two bottles from his fridge and coming back over to the couch. He sat so close to Derek their knees leaned into each other as he turned to give Derek his water. 

"So..." Stiles started, fidgeting with his water between his knees. Derek raised an eyebrow at him, setting his own water down on the coffee table in front of them. 

"So...?" Derek prompted when it didn't seem like Stiles was going to continue. Throwing Derek a nervous smile, Stiles set his own water down and seemed to steel himself for whatever he was going to say. 

"So I was thinking today we should amp up the scenting." He rushed out, watching Derek for his reaction. Derek felt his brow furrow as to why this was such a big deal. 

"Ok? I mean, we were going to have to eventually. What did you have in mind?" 

"I uh...I want to do it with a little more skin to skin contact...and I want to take pictures..." Stiles ducked his head and waited for Derek reaction. He must've expected Derek to immediately trash the idea and on another day he very well might have, but right then he was feeling fairly amicable to the idea. It might have been the left over rut pheromones causing him to be so agreeable since normally he would feel on edge as an Omega in an Alpha’s den, but Derek couldn’t find himself with the will to fight it. In fact, the idea caused his breath catch in his throat and he felt his eyes flash in a spark of arousal. Stiles didn't see that, however, since he was still staring at the ground waiting for Derek’s response. 

"Do you want to do it here on the couch or where? How much more skin to skin are we talking? Like, shirts off or what?" Derek asked, looking around for any other place that might accommodate them both that wasn't Stiles' bed. 

"Wait, you're okay with it?" Stiles asked, head popping up and eyes narrowing at Derek as if he was trying to trick him. 

"Yeah, I'm fine with it. I mean, we need to get used to touching one another if we're ever going to try this out in public in front of other people. And the pictures we took in the bar were fun so I think this'll be fun too." Derek shrugged and looked down at his knees, starting to feel a little self-conscious about his apparent lack of worry towards being somewhat more exposed in front of this Alpha. 

"Okay. That makes sense. I just didn't want you to feel pressured or anything. You don’t, right? I mean you know you can say no and I’ll respect it."

"Thank you, but no, I don't feel pressured." 

"Okay then. Uhm, I have my camera set up in the second bedroom if you want to follow me?" Derek shot him an amused look. 

"Worried I'd take it wrong, were you? So worried you went ahead and set anyway?" Derek ribbed gently. 

"I was worried you wouldn't want to do it, but I figured if you did I'd cut down the chances of it getting weird by being ready in case you said yes. Care to follow me?" Stiles held out his hand. Derek stared at it for a long second before sighing and grasping it with his own. He stood and followed Stiles down a side hallway that ran beside the kitchen to a back bedroom. It didn't have a wall of windows, but more exposed brick and one giant industrial window. Stiles had a giant bean bag chair that was easily the size of a double bed. Derek looked at him incredulously.

"Are you a pot-smoking hippie? What is this thing?" Derek asked, staring at the giant bean bag covered in some linen fabric covered in Moroccan-influenced designs. There were more plants in the room and wooden pillars of varying heights with candles on top. Stiles grinned sheepishly at him. 

"Have I mentioned my multiple degrees in exploring the human condition?" Stiles asked, brushing past Derek to turn and jump into the bean bag on his back. Derek looked at him for a moment before pinching his nose. It was then he noticed the camera set up on a tripod nearby. Stiles was crawling towards one of the wooden pillars and picking up a small remote that looked like the key fob he had to unlock his car. 

“What’s that do?” Derek asked, leaning against the doorway. 

“It’s how I’m going to work the camera. I can zoom, pan, direct, and shoot with this baby. It’s pretty great, I have to admit.” Stiles looked fondly as the remote in his hand. 

“Alright, so how do we get this thing started?” Derek asked. Stiles sat up and tossed the remote onto the side of the bag before standing and pulling his shirt over his head. The move went more smoothly than Derek would have expected and the Alpha was a vision. His torso was dotted with moles like his face and neck, but also strewn with lean muscles. Whereas Derek worked his physique to have the hard juts of muscle that one would expect from a body builder, Stiles had the soft lines that followed his muscles, appearing and disappearing with each flex and relaxation. Stiles was smooth, with only a patch of hair between his pecs and a trail from his belly button down to places still hidden from Derek’s eye. 

Derek let his eyes roam as Stiles bent to shuck off his shoes and socks. When he finished, Stiles stood up and faced Derek with his arms open. 

“Okay, so I figured we’d be this clothed.” His arms fell, slapping loudly against his thighs. Derek nodded almost to himself as he stood and began to undress. He shed his shirt without ceremony, throwing it towards the pile Stiles had made of his own pieces. A groan caused Derek to pause as he was reaching down to unlace his shoes. He looked up towards Stiles and smirked at the wide eyed look he was giving him. 

“Yes?” Derek asked, pulling on the ends of his laces to undo the knot before pushing deftly moving to the opposite shoe. 

“You’re hairy.” Stiles stated simply. Derek glanced back towards his face and saw he was biting his lip. 

“Is that an issue?” Derek asked, straightening. Nervous energy was starting to creep into his muscles and he could feel his shoulders starting to hunch up defensively as he waited for Stiles to answer. 

“Only if you find it inappropriate for me to compulsively run my fingers through it….or bury my face in it… and perhaps purr to myself while doing it.” Stiles was blushing. What had started as a pink tint around his ears now infused his face and neck the longer he stared at Derek half-dressed. Derek moved forward, feeling bold, and grabbed Stiles’ hand. He brought it up slowly and pressed it into the center of his chest. Stiles response was for his eyes to flutter close as a deep, satisfied groan pushed through his chest and his fingers began to curl and straighten where Derek held his hand. When he opened his eyes, they burned a steady red. Derek smiled and took a step back, letting go of Stiles’ hand in the process. The red in Stiles’ eyes didn’t fade. In fact, his expression turned hungry as he began to move forward to get his hand back on Derek’s chest. Derek grinned mischievously, catching Stiles off guard before darting around him towards the open doorway. 

The thrill of the hunt. The thrill of being pursued by a lover in the most primal way took over their bodies. Derek could hear Stiles growl from behind him and the slap of both of their feet as they weaved patterns through the apartment building. Every time Stiles would tag Derek’s side or try to block his way, Derek weaved and pushed his way through to get away. Derek’s laughter echoed around Stiles’ increasingly frustrated growls. Finally, after what felt like hours of chase but had probably only been about twenty minutes, Derek felt Stiles’ body push against his from the back and propel him into the wall. He felt himself pinned by Stiles’ weight, his wrists firmly pushed against the wall as Stiles panted against the back of his neck. Chills erupted over his skin at the feeling. 

“Are you going to behave now or am I going to have to chase you again?” Stiles growled past his elongated canines. His words were lisped due to the teeth. Derek tried to turn his head and look at him, but the feeling of those twin points pushing against the meet of his shoulder stopped him. It also brought to his attention the uncomfortable pressure the wall was putting against his thickening dick. 

“I’ll behave.” Derek finally responded, tilting his head away from Stiles’ mouth to show him submission. After a suspended moment where Stiles continued to pant wetly against Derek’s neck, his teeth poised to sink into the muscle, Stiles’ caved and stepped back off of Derek’s body. Derek turned and leaned against the wall, acutely aware that he was still being bracketed between Stiles’ arms. Stiles’ was still panting slightly, his head hung and eyes towards the ground. Derek shifted, trying to adjust his stance so that he didn’t have to reach down and actually adjust his dick. The run was a flight of fancy and the end of a chase was usually sex….which Derek really didn’t think he was ready for. Not to mention that Stiles’ hadn’t signed up to have sex with him, only fake date him. 

Derek was just starting to push himself into a full fledged guilt fest when Stiles looked up at him through his tousled hair. His eyes were still glowing red, though not as brightly as before. His breathing had also calmed and he let his arms drop from the wall when he straightened. 

“Let’s go take these pictures, huh?” Stiles’ suggested, a small smile gracing his lips. He looked bashful and Derek was confused as to why. He’d been the one to lead a chase. He’d initiated this awkwardness. 

“Yeah, okay.” Derek replied, voice catching in his throat. 

Stiles nodded once before turned and leading the way back into the room with the camera and bean bag chair. Derek walked in behind him and sat immediately down on the giant cushion. He couldn’t seem to wipe the grin off his face, no matter how hard he tried to push back on his infamous stoic scowl. 

“So… going to draw me like one of your French girls, Jack?” Derek tried to joke, feigning casualness as he lay back onto the cushion and placed one of his hands behind his head. Stiles grinned up at him from where he was turning on the camera and checking that it was linked with his remote. 

“Maybe if you don’t behave.” 

Derek barely had a chance to let his stomach flutter at the comment before Stiles was launching himself into the space next to Derek. He turned and stared at Derek, so close that Derek could appreciate the different shades of brown and gold that scored through his iris. “Especially since I can’t draw a circle. It really would be a punishment for both of us.” 

“Good thing you have the camera then…” Derek didn’t know why he was whispering. He also didn’t know when the lump in his throat at formed or how electricity had suddenly seemed to infuse the air between Stiles’ lips and his. 

“Mhm” was all Stiles replied before moving forward and pressing his lips against Derek’s. The zing of pleasure that shot through Derek’s body was singular and amazing. He felt the nerve endings at his fingertips tingle and his heart seemed to stop momentarily to suspend the moment. Then Stiles raised his free hand to cup Derek’s jaw, his lips moving impossibly slow as the brushed against his, sucking lightly to change the kiss from a statement into a request. Derek responded almost unconsciously as his body shifted towards Stiles and his hands reaching out to skip down Stiles’ ribs and settle against the dip in his waist. 

The first hint of tongue came from him. Stiles’ teeth had scraped gently, possibly even accidentally, over his bottom lip and Derek’s body writhed in response. He’d licked out to touch the bottom of his own lip, causing him to lick against Stiles’ lip in the process. The reaction was explosive. Stiles’ body shot forward along with his mouth, which burned and claimed Derek’s in a barrage of bites and kisses. His hand first pushed Derek back so that he lay flat against the giant cushion. Derek tried not to let his confusion show, but he felt himself stumble through their next kiss while he tried to figure out what he’d done wrong. But then, he pulled him closer as Stiles’ settled his body on top. His weight holding Derek down coupled with the shallow, almost unconscious rhythm of his hips was enough for Derek’s lower body to get fully back in the game. The bite of the denim against his dick was almost enough to get him to stop pressing back into the gentle grinds of Stiles’ hips, but each zing of pleasure that followed it convinced him he could keep going. 

Derek and Stiles continued this way for awhile. Derek felt like it could’ve lasted an eternity and he would’ve been perfectly happy, but Stiles’ hands were traveling lower down his back and dipping further under the waist band of his jeans. Derek felt the beginnings of warm, damp slick seeping from his hole and knew his cock was spurting beads of pre-cum against his abs. Stiles’ lips had left his mouth and were now tracing the tendons in his neck. His teeth scraped against the skin there, pinching it and pulling it lightly. The sting was just enough to have Derek panting open mouthed against Stiles’ ear, whimpers being pulled from him as Stiles’ hands kneaded the muscles of his lower back. A deeper bite against the meat of his shoulder caused Derek to full out moan, his hips punching up against Stiles’ and his dick drooling thickly onto his skin. He writhed underneath him, arching and trying to rub as much skin against the Alpha as possible. It may have been the warm, wetness of his pre-cum smearing between them or the way Derek’s fingers spasmed as they thread through Stiles’ hair, pulling tight even as the pushed Stiles’ face closer, but Stiles’ released his hold on Derek’s skin abruptly, pushing back and away from him. 

“Jesus, Derek….” Stiles gasped, eyes glowing red as he pushed his body away from Derek’s. Derek was getting lost in the feeling however, his thinking fuzzy and his body acting more on instinct than rational logic. He gripped the Alpha’s hips and tried to pull him down so he could feel that solid weight above him and the smooth slide of skin against skin. Stiles’ looked wrecked, resisting Derek’s insistent tugs and the whines he let out. He pushed his forehead down against Derek’s, stilling him as he squeezed his own eyes shut. “Just give me a second.” 

“Alpha….” Derek whined, running his hands up Stiles’ straining arms and over his shoulders. He settled them on the back of Stiles’ neck as he tried to wait patiently. His body felt hot and needy, not unlike the beginning of a heat. He pushed his lips up and against Stiles’, peppering small kisses on and around his mouth as he waited for the Alpha to start moving again. 

“Derek, I need you to stop. I don’t… I don’t…” Stiles started, trying to pull his face and head further back from Derek’s insistent mouth. “Please sit STILL!” 

The Alpha command locked Derek’s muscles as he flopped back against the cushion. He whined and arched as much as he could, knowing he didn’t want to disobey Stiles’ order. Stiles hovered above him, taking deep breaths in. He hung his head momentarily, giving Derek a view of the top of his head as he tried to calm himself. 

“Jesus, Derek. You’re not wearing any underwear…” Stiles groaned. Looking down, Derek could see the top of his dick in the space between the waistband of his jeans and his stomach. The tip was shiny with his pre-cum, as was grooves of his abs. Flicking his gaze upward, he could see where the slick liquid had smeared itself onto Stiles as well and felt a rumble of satisfaction roll through his limbs. Stiles’ seemed entranced by the sight of his cockhead pressing minutely forward and then back as Derek breathed beneath him. “Gooooooo-od damnit.” 

Then the last bit of warmth from Stiles’ body was gone. Stiles’ had pushed himself up and off the bed, turning off the camera and staring at Derek like he was scared of being attacked. 

“I’m going to leave.” Derek whined at Stiles’ words, eyes tracking every deep breath and roaming over thick outline of Stiles’ cock against his jeans. What had he done wrong? 

“I can’t do this. I thought I could. Derek, I’m afraid my rut hormones are compromising your ability to reason through this…. And, and….” Stiles faltered as his body greedily traced every part of Derek from his head to his knees. He licked his lips, eyes glowing briefly before he snapped them closed and looked away. He didn’t look back as he finished, “If I go any further I’m going to go back into rut. I don’t want that and I don’t want you to feel like I coerced you into anything more than you asked for. So I’m going to go into my bedroom and lock the door. I want you to get your breath and your sense back and then go home. I’ll text you when I’ve posted the pictures.” 

Derek felt bereft. His body physically ached at the prospect of not finishing what had been started or of not having Stiles’ finish in the room with him. Stiles’ glanced back briefly, longing etched into every feature alongside regret as he choked out an apology before walking out of the room and away. Holding back the whine in his throat, Derek grit his teeth and clenched his hands at his side. He tried to shake off the fog in his brain telling him to run after his Alpha and beg forgiveness. Stiles’ wasn’t _his_ Alpha. Stiles’ wasn’t even his boyfriend. 

Standing, Derek walked over to the window and pushed it open. He practically smashed his face against the screen to take long, deep wuffs of fresh air. The longer he sat there and breathed, the more he realized exactly how saturated the apartment was with rut hormones. It’d been foolish of both of them to get near each other this soon after Stiles’ rut had finished. He’d acted wanton and Stiles’ had responded in kind. When Derek could fully feel his cheeks infused from embarrassment, he’d decided he was clear headed enough to leave. 

Quickly gathering his shirt and phone, he called out a goodbye to Stiles’ from the doorway and walked out of the apartment. Stiles’ hadn’t answered, but Derek didn’t expect him to. The apartment had felt empty and foreign without Stiles walking him through it. Derek needed to get back home, take a shower, and figure out how to work past this snafu. Despite knowing that most of what had happened was caused by hormones and alcohol, Derek couldn’t deny that he’d felt more from that one encounter with Stiles than he’d felt from his entire relationship with Kate. More of what he wasn’t sure and he wasn’t sure he was ready to explore it either. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You can check out my stuff and my at [ my tumblr, SkinSharpenedTeeth ](http://skinsharpenedteeth.tumblr.com) any time. I take prompts and I like talking to folks about Sterek.   
> Comments and kudos are always welcome and help me get out of bed in the morning to continue writing. Thank you! :)


	6. Chapter Five

A week later and barely a peep from Stiles had Derek on edge. His thumb nails stung due to his near constant chewing while he was alone and waiting for the pictures to post on Facebook. He didn’t hear any word on them until Thursday while he and Isaac were shooting the shit in his office fifteen minutes before quitting time. His laptop chirped to notify him of an incoming e-mail while he and Isaac were scoping out some handmade Italian leather shoes on Amazon. Frowning, Derek clicked over to see the e-mail was actually to his personal account and not through the business one. Opening it, he frowned at the short message Stiles had sent. 

\------

 

**To: Derek.Hale@gmail.com**   
**From: StilesSolo@geekmail.com**

**Subject: Photos**

**Message:** _You should probably check these photos out before I post any of them. Let me know which ones you want up. Thx, Stiles. **Link** _

\-----

Derek glanced over at Isaac nervously.

“Oh no fucking way I’m leaving now. Let’s see these bad boys.” Isaac said, shuffling to the edge of his seat and closer to the computer screen. Derek could already feel the blush welling under his skin as he clicked the link and browser opened up with the photos.

“Holy SHIT, Derek! You made a porno!” Isaac crowed, trying to stifle his laugh and failing miserably. To say the photos were racy would have been an understatement. Derek didn’t understand how Stiles managed to get such quality and angles out of his camera…or when he’d even been doing any of it, but the photos that Derek was looking at left little to the imagination. They actually brought back exactly how hot that entire encounter had been and Derek had spent the last week trying desperately to tell himself it was just the rut hormones messing with his system. The photos told another story.

“Out, Isaac. OUT!” Derek commanded, herding Isaac up and away from the computer. Isaac was still giggling to himself as he left the office. Derek pushed the door closed on Isaac’s heels and locked it, leaning his body against it as he tried to calm his racing heart. He’d only gotten halfway through the photoset and as far as he could tell, they hadn’t even introduced tongue yet. His slacks felt tighter than they should and he wasn’t sure he should be looking at these in his office at all.

Walking quickly over to the laptop, he shut the lid and gathered his things to go home. He’d skip the gym today. He was pretty sure as soon as he got back to his apartment he’d be giving himself a workout anyway.

\----

The photos that Derek could imagine living with his sisters and mother seeing went up on Saturday. He’d only deemed three shots mild enough for public display. There were a lot others that he’d saved to his computer for personal time if he ever felt lonely. After assuring that the photos had made it to the world wide web Stiles and Derek decided to go out to dinner and ignore their phones while they awaited the blow up.

“Wouldn’t it be ironic is no one said anything about them? Just a couple ‘likes’ and then they kept on scrolling?” Stiles mused over his half eaten steak and glass of wine. Derek nodded and finished chewing his bite of fish before answering.

“I’m not sure about ironic, but it sure wouldn’t be the reaction we’d hoped for. Honestly, I’m pretty sure I’m going to have at least four texts from my family alone asking who the hell you are and why they haven’t met you yet.”

Stiles looked a little stricken at the thought.

“Have you told your family about _any_ of this?” Stiles asked, focus unwavering from Derek’s face. He felt his face flush with a faint blush as he took another sip of wine before answering.

“No… no I haven’t. I… I didn’t really think we’d get this far with it.”

“Oh.”

Stiles one-worded reply made Derek shift nervously in his seat. It sounded like there was a lot unsaid filling the silence. Stiles mouth had pursed together like he’d bitten into something more tart than expected and Derek started feeling panic at how he could help this situation.

“It’s not that… it wasn’t you! I just… didn’t know if we’d mix well or if we’d be able to get comfortable enough around each other to make things believable. And I’m …. I’m prone to bet on failure. Especially if the success is contingent on me. So… I’m sorry. That wasn’t meant as a jab towards you or your abilities. I just didn’t know if I could do this or not. I’m still surprised I’ve gotten this far in without bailing.”

Derek lifted his eyes hesitantly once he’d finished. Stiles was staring at him in surprise and concern.

“You know that you’re…. capable, I guess is as good a word as any, of achieving anything you want. Derek, you’re extremely successful. You’re—“

“Not as an Omega I’m not. I’m afraid as an Omega I’ve failed in just about every way possible and sabotaged the rest.”

“You… what?” Stiles exclaimed, wine and food forgotten. He looked flabbergasted. Derek didn’t blame him. It took him a long time to figure out how exactly he was the master of his own misery. Kate helped him see part of it, but he knew in following his heart with how he dressed and acted that he had been setting himself up for decades before she could confirm his suspicions.

“It’s okay. I’m okay with it. I’m not expecting much. I’ll probably grow old and alone and that might be better for me anyway. I won’t have to embarrass anyone or myself with pretending I can be what they want me to be.”

“Derek.” Stiles said his name in such a way as to command his attention and derail any further explanations.

“You don’t have to please anyone. You are whoever you want to be. You are allowed to want and need someone who accepts you as you are without limitations. And you are not a failure just because you haven’t found that person or because you’ve decided to be that person for yourself” Stiles said seriously, his voice pinning Derek down. Derek smiled weakly and nodded. He didn’t think he could bring himself to agree, but it was nice that Stiles had said it nonetheless.

“So what’s next on your Kate agenda?” Derek asked after a beat or two of silence. Stiles sighed in defeat and sat back in his chair, taking up his glass of wine and taking a large swallow of it.

“I was thinking we’d kind of have a run in with her. Not actually talk to her, but let her see us together. I’ve got to go over to ArgentWare for some human resources workshop and I know she’ll be in attendance. I figured if you were comfortable with the idea that you could come over and meet me for lunch? We’d go somewhere else, of course, but we’d linger enough to give some hello’s and make sure she gets a good look at the two of us together. It might be a good idea for you to wear one of my undershirts or something that day.”

Derek sat back in his own chair and thought about the plan. His skin crawled and his stomach turned uncomfortably at the idea of seeing Kate again, but part of him thought it might be good to see her in a controlled environment before the party. It would also help sell the idea of Him & Stiles if they were seen integrating into each other’s professional, public life. Seeing Kate again, though… ugh! His mind just recoiled.

“What are you thinking, man? You’ve got a look on your face like you want to rip into someone.” Stiles asked.

“No.” Derek replied, shaking his head and relaxing his expression. “I just was thinking of seeing Kate again. I just… really hate her. I hate the effect she’s had on me. I don’t look forward to ever seeing her or letting her see me again, but I think the plan’s solid. It would probably be best to see her once before we go somewhere and alcohol is available.”

They settled the details between them over desert. When Derek arrived home, he had a reusable grocery tote full of Stiles’ used undershirts and a pillowcase. As he neared his own door, Derek felt the hairs on his nape raise. Stopping with the key poised over the lock, he waited. The barest whiff of a familiar perfume wafted into his nose. He felt a cold sweat breakout even as every nerve in his body stung at the spike of adrenaline. Pushing the key into the lock, he let himself into the apartment. Dropping the tote onto the floor, he stood and let himself take a deep inhale as the blue bled into his eyes.

The scent wasn’t strong. It didn’t smell like it had come from inside the apartment. Turning, Derek locked his door and engaged the deadbolt. He walked quickly around his apartment, checking closets and windows, searching for any more traces of the scent. He found nothing. He let out the breath he’d been holding as he sagged down onto the couch, covering his face with his hands as he let some of the tension out of his muscles. It was probably a coincidence. It was just her perfume. It didn’t mean it was her. It didn’t mean that she had come by his apartment the same day he’d posted mildly indecent photos of himself and Stiles on the internet. It didn’t mean it was her.

When his heart no longer felt like it would leap from his chest and flee, Derek stood and retrieved the bag of Stiles’ scent from the entryway. He walked through his big, empty apartment up to his bedroom waiting for someone to jump out at him. He’d checked everywhere someone could feasibly hide in the apartment, but the feeling of being watched didn’t leave him. He dug through the bag and found the pillowcase quickly, swapping out his own for it on his favorite pillow. Once he’d undressed for bed, he tugged on one of the shirts, too. It was a waste of resources, but he needed the smell of Alpha. It was already going to be hard enough to sleep with that watched feeling making him want to cover and lock every door and window in the apartment.

He settled into bed and curled tightly around his pillow. He mentally recounted all the places he hid weapons, including in the bedside drawer. Slipping his hand in it he pulled the gun out and put it under his pillow by his hand. Derek hated that he felt the need for protection in his own home against a phantom scent of a perfume that could belong to anyone. _It doesn’t mean it was her_. He kept repeating the mantra in his head until he fell asleep. He wouldn’t allow himself to explore the ‘what if’ on the other side.

\----

The day of the “accidental run-in” with Kate came and Derek had almost shaken off the feeling he’d gotten when that perfume hit his nose. He had taken an early lunch in order to get over to the Argent Ware building in time to meet Stiles. He’d purposely worn the maroon button up and slate tie combo that Kate had always turned his nose up at. Making his way to the fifth floor where the workshop was being conducted, he felt his shoulders pinch together in tension. As soon as the elevators dinged open, he stepped out feeling ready to react to anything. What he was met with was an empty, slightly cold waiting area flanking long hallways that lead to conference rooms. Sighing, he picked a chair near the elevator and began scrolling through his phone as he waited.

“Are you here to see someone, dear?” a kind, elderly receptionist asked over her desk. She was smiling kindly at him, but Derek couldn’t help feeling like she really just wanted him out of her sitting area.

“Yeah my, uh, boyfriend? He’s doing the workshop today. We’re going to lunch.” Derek added a smile, feeling more awkward the longer she studied him, nodding more to herself than him it seemed.

“Okay. They should be out any time now.” Derek nodded and shot her another quick, pinched smile before going back to his phone and running his thumb over the blank screen to pretend he was doing something so she wouldn’t keep trying to make conversation with him. Thankfully, the doors to the nearest conference room opened before she could talk to him further and a herd of people came out in a loud cacophony of voices. Derek’s eyes darted through the throng to spot Stiles, his heart starting to beat faster the longer it took to find him.

“Derek?” a female voice said clearly from the opposite side. Not just a female voice, _her_ voice. Derek turned his head slowly, the blood draining from his body as he met her predatory gaze. “Well isn’t this a surprise.”

She was practically purring as she walked closer to him, her eyes raking up and down his body. Derek shifted in his seat, trying to figure out how best to protect his underbelly while not looking affected by her presence.

“Kate” was all her could grit out between his clenched teeth. His tried to turn and look for Stiles amongst the now thinning crowd, but Kate interrupted him before he could move more than an inch.

“I saw your pictures on Facebook. I must say, if I’d known you were into such exhibitionist displays of affection I would’ve had us do a photoshoot of our own. We still could, you know. I know your heat is coming up and I’d love to get a shot of you strung out on my ---“

“Heeey Der!” Stiles voice felt like a balm to his growing horror, even if Derek did jump slightly at the first brush of his fingers against his shoulder. Derek looked up at Stiles who was smiling his usual professional, unassuming grin. Derek couldn’t help reaching up and covering Stiles’ hand with his own.

“Hey. Ready to get out of here?” Derek asked, hoping no one but himself could hear the slight tremor in his voice.

“Sure, babe.” Stiles answered, stepping back to let Derek stand. As soon as he was standing, Stiles wrapped an arm around his side and pressed a kiss into his cheek. The blush Derek felt was warm, but also grounding.

“Oh hey Kate. Still there?” Stiles asked, turning towards Kate whose face looked like thunder. Stiles was smirking, his hand firmly wrapped around Derek’s waist. “We’re going to lunch. See you for the afternoon set.”

With that, Stiles pulled Derek to side step around Kate’s immobile frame. She hadn’t moved or responded, but Derek could feel the anger rolling off of her. Part of him delighted in the easy way Stiles had thwarted her and saved him from hearing any further her thoughts about photography. The other part, quietly in the back of his brain, told him to watch his back. She wasn’t usually thwarted quite that easily.

\---

That night, Derek went to the gym and met Boyd, Erica, and Isaac for dinner to talk about Stiles and how the plan was progressing. It was good to get to see them and shoot the shit and Derek felt warm from the companionship and alcohol as he walked into his apartment building. His phone was blinking that he had a voicemail and as he stepped off the elevator he typed in his PIN and prepared to listen to the message.

“Hey _Der_ ,” a familiar voice hissed over the line. Derek froze in his hallway, key once again poised over the lock. Dread flooded his system as the message continued. “I went by your place. It doesn’t smell very much like him, you know. The pillowcase and the undershirts are a good charade and they might fool a laymen, but not me. I know the inside of you is still mine. I don’t care what scent you on your clothes. I’m going to be here, baby, waiting for you. I’m going to be here for your heat, too. You’re mine, Derek. MINE.”

Minutes later, Derek was in a cab heading for Laura’s. He was shaking and he didn’t remember leaving his apartment building. The sobs that were building in his throat were kept at bay long enough. He just had to get to Laura’s. He needed someone to help him dial the numbers on his phone to get the police. If she was there she could be arrested. If she’d gotten in… how would she have gotten in?

Derek’s mind was a jumble of panic and illogical thoughts as he rushed from the cab and into his sister’s building. He walked on autopilot to her doorway, banging frantically as if Kate was hot on his heels. The white noise that filled his ears didn’t subside when Laura opened her doorway, face concerned as Derek pushed past her and then slammed the door shut, bolting every lock from the chain to the deadbolt. Finally, when he was sure they were all locked, he pressed his back against the door and slid down to the floor letting himself finally cry.

\---

Hours… or maybe only an hour later…there was a soft knock at the front door of Laura’s apartment. Derek curled tighter around the giant stuffed bear in Laura’s guest room, blocking out the murmurs of conversation. There was a lull between Laura and the knocker and then a softly shut door. Derek strained to listen and heard all three locks click on the door. Then Laura softly padded down the hall towards him.

“Hey Der-bear,” she called softly, standing just inside the doorway. “Stiles is here. I’m going to go to bed. Call out if you need me.”

Derek listened to her back out of the doorway and continue on to her bedroom. Sighing, Derek sat up, releasing the bear onto the bed. He reached out and grabbed the box of wine he’d been nursing since Laura had calmed him down enough to talk. She’d called the cops to check out his apartment and they’d let her know that no one was there, that there was no sign of a break in, but Derek hadn’t wanted to go home. So he’d commandeered a box of wine and one of Laura’s tanks and stripped down to his boxer briefs to convince himself he could stay. Laura hadn’t argued, only requested a glass or two from the box while Derek cried. Now he picked up the box and carried it under one arm, his glass in hand, and made his way to the living room to see his visit.

Derek didn’t look up when he entered the room, couldn’t meet Stiles’ eyes. He didn’t know if he was mad at Stiles or if he just wanted to bury himself into the circle of his arms to feel safe. Either way, he was starting to sway so he sad down hard on the floor by the coffee table, depositing his glass and boxed wine near him.

The two of them sat in silence, neither knowing where to start. Eventually, as always, it was Stiles who broke the silence between them.

“I’m sorry” Stiles said, simply. Derek looked up at him and saw how sad he looked when he looked at Derek.

“I told you she was crazy,” Derek replied, feeling petulant.

“Yeah. You did. I’m sorry I miscalculated how serious you were about that. Do you still want to go to the Christmas party with me?”

Derek drew in a heavy sigh. He knew that he didn’t. He didn’t want to do anything ever again that would bring him face to face with that Alpha. This was his town, however. His family had been the dominant pack here for generations and while he wasn’t an Alpha and would never lead, his blood ran through every gilded faucet and disgusting gutter of the city. He wouldn’t be driven out or cower in fear of some lesser family’s Alpha offspring.

“Yes, I do.” Derek stated, voice hard and angry. Stiles scooted closer towards him along the couch.

“What do you need right now?” Stiles asked, voice small and hesitant. Derek shrugged first, but thought about it.

“I want… I want to get out here. Just for a weekend. I had planned to go on a getaway trip for my pseudo-heat this weekend anyway. But I… I don’t want to be alone. That probably sounds stupid and weak, but Kate scares the shit out of me and she knows this is the weekend my heat should fall on. I just don’t want to be alone for it. I want a way out if she shows up. I want someone else there.” Derek finished, finally raising his eyes to meet Stiles. “Would you go with me?”

Stiles nodded, Adam’s apple bobbing as he swallowed thickly. Derek nodded back and then laid back on the floor, his head feeling fuzzy from the drama and the wine.

“Stay with me tonight, too?” Derek asked on a whim, feeling himself give up on caring one way or the other what the answer was.

“Sure. Do you want to stay here or at my place?” Stiles asked, his voice feeling very far away to Derek.

“Here. Let’s stay here. Just come to bed with me.” Derek asked, sitting up and swaying slightly. Stiles nodded, standing and offering his hand for Derek to help himself up. Derek grabbed it and stood, keeping hold of it as he lead Stiles down the hallway towards the guest room. When they got in there, Stiles started stripping next to the far side of the bed, emptying his pockets onto the bedside table.

“By the way….” Stiles started, a grin in his voice. Derek looked over sharply. “You should know that that is the most ridiculous shirt ever and I think you should keep it.”

Confused, Derek turns and checks out the shirt in the mirror. A smile breaks his lips before he realizes he’s amused by the shirt too. When Laura had handed it to him, it had just been a balled up mass of pink brushed cotton. Now that he could look at himself he saw that it said in bold, gold letters “Trophy Wife” across the chest. Meeting Stiles’ eyes over his shoulder through the mirror, the two tried to hold in their laughter and succeeded for three whole seconds. Soon Laura was pounding on the adjoining wall and yelling for this to “Shut the fuck up, Losers! Tomorrow’s a goddamn work day!”

Derek managed to settle down to occasional chuckles and as Stiles slipped in behind him, his back pressed solidly against Derek’s, Derek felt calm enough to finally get some sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You can check out my stuff and my at [ my tumblr, SkinSharpenedTeeth ](http://skinsharpenedteeth.tumblr.com) any time. I take prompts and I like talking to folks about Sterek.   
> Comments and kudos are always welcome and help me get out of bed in the morning to continue writing. Thank you! :)


	7. Chapter Six

The drive up to the mountains was long. Derek had booked the weekend at a lakeside lodge he’d heard about from Laura back when he and Kate were still together. He’d booked it thinking his heat might be more bearable if it was somewhere nice. At the time he’d felt guilty, like he was trying to trick Kate back into romance instead of the insistent faux breeding she liked back at his apartment. When they’d broken up, he’d tried to cancel but as most fancy places go, the refund policy was a joke and he’d be better off just going alone. Now he had Stiles to go with him. Another Alpha, another chance? Shaking his head, Derek focused on trees as they scrolled past while Stiles’ Damien Rice CD played over the speakers. 

“This is really, _REALLY_ depressing music, you know that right?” Derek asked, breaking the silence. Stiles grinned at him without taking his eyes off the road. 

“It’s emotional. But yeah, it can definitely be depressing. You want to change it?” Stiles asked, glancing briefly over towards him in question. 

“No, it’s fine.” Derek replied, sinking back against the window. Stiles finally turned his head fully and looked over at him before pulling a face and reaching forward towards the knobs. Stiles shuffled to the next CD on the list with a quick press of buttons and the sound of rock-n-roll filled the car. Derek’s ears perked and he watched Stiles' make jazz hands against the steering wheel as the first song played. 

“Who’s this?” he asked, sitting up straighter in his seat and drumming his fingers against his leg to the beat. 

“Butch Walker and the Let’s Go Out Tonites. Best album he did.” Stiles replied, turning up the volume minutely. Derek listened raptly, bouncing his head and zoning in on the lyrics. The album lasted them until they were pulling under the awning of the lodge’s check-in area. Derek and Stiles hopped out and left their keys with valet along with their names before they continued into the large, cathedral-esque main are of the lodge. There were groups of leather sofas and chairs around several different fire places that were placed throughout the hall. Animal horn accents were dipped in faux gold and marble accents added to the decadence of the room. Derek turned towards the front desk and smiled at the clerk who was watching them with benign politeness. 

“Derek Hale. I have a reservation.” Derek handed over his credit card as the clerk tapped away on her computer. 

“Ah yes. Here you are. Victoria’s Suite in the North Wing. I’ll have the bell boy take your bags there. Let me show you how to get there from here and where you’ll find our amenities.” She leaned over and began pointing out hallways and several different service areas around the hotel. Their suite was on the farthest end of the North Wing and was accessible from the first floor, though the suite itself had two. She also plied them with brochures of the trails surrounding the lodge and options of boat rentals if they wanted to go out on the lake. Derek nodded along with her and took all the papers from her before turning to Stiles so they could get to their room. Stiles looked floored and was shaking his head in disbelief. 

“Good glory, did you rent the Taj Mahal?” Stiles asked, gingerly taking his golden key card with Swarovski crystal work on one side. Derek felt his cheeks heat up in a faint blush. 

“Well, it was a last ditch attempt to make Kate and I work. If she hasn’t pulled what she had during my last heat I’d be trying to woo her into romance right now. As it stands though…” Derek let the thought drop unfinished. Stiles was looking at him with a face that spoke of a shared in experience in regret and Derek knew it wasn't pity, but that Stiles had been down that road himself at one point, though Derek didn't know the details. Forcing a smile onto his face, Derek held out his hand for Stiles to take. 

“Come on. There’s a hot tub and a king sized bed," Derek said with a wink. Stiles reached out and intertwined their fingers. 

“Oooo, you sure know how to treat an Alpha. Which to use first?” Stiles teased. 

When they finally reached their door number Derek felt his own nerves ratchet up again. He wasn’t sure what he wanted to happen this weekend. He wasn’t sure if he wanted what was going on between him and Stiles to be more than a ploy to push away his ex or if it was worth exploring as an actual long term...thing. He didn’t know if he was even ready for another relationship with an Alpha…. But the way he felt with Stiles was unlike anything he’d ever experienced. Stiles who was kind, but not cloying. He didn't try to bowl over Derek's thoughts or feelings with his own and while Stiles sometimes pointed out their unique dynamics he didn’t shame them. He made it seem fun and Derek was exhilarated at finding someone he didn’t have to pretend around who wasn’t a Beta. 

They opened the door to the suite and Derek heard Stiles suck in his breath. It was as ostentatious as the rest of the lodge, but far cozier. The fireplace had been lit for their arrival and a bottle of champagne and chocolate covered strawberries set out. There was a fur rug on the dark wood floor in front of the fireplace and a large sectional sofa. Everything was decorated in white and grey with flashes of gold and deep brown in the accents. Derek let the door fall closed behind them as he and Stiles stalked through the suite to situate themselves with the layout. Beside the main sitting area was a folding glass doorway out to the deck where there was a hot tub and some lounge chairs around a fire pit. Moving upstairs they found the bedroom with a king sized bed covered in more pillows than anyone could possible ever need and a plush duvet of the softest cotton. The bathroom sported a two person tub and standing shower along with a steam room. The double vanity and small walk-in closet between the bedroom and bathroom made it feel like a very expensive apartment instead of a suite. 

“Uh, Derek? Let me just go ahead and tell you that she did not deserve you. Holy. Crapoli.” Stiles said after having touched every surface available and staring around all the rooms with wide eyes and slack jaw. Derek snorted and made his way back downstairs to the sitting area. 

“I’m getting something to eat. Want to come look at the menu?” Derek called back up the stairs. He heard a slight tumble and then Stiles was tromping down the stairs excitedly. 

“Ooo yes! I’m starving!” He hopped over the back of the couch to settle almost on top of Derek as they shared the menu. Derek felt himself shifting into the warmth of Stiles' body as they looked over the food options. It took him much longer than necessary to make any choices since all he wanted to do was bury his nose against Stiles' neck and breathe in heaven. 

"Maybe after some dinner we should hit the hot tub?" Derek heard himself suggest breathily. He hadn't realized he was leaning closer into Stiles' space until his own voice shook him out of his daze. His nose was almost touching Stiles' neck and he pushed back with a squeak of embarrassment as his cheeks began to flame in embarrassment. Stiles was looking at him with an amused grin as he slipped his arm around Derek's shoulders and pulled him back against him, lifting his chin to let Derek press his nose directly into the base of his throat. Derek hesitated though as he wondered what Stiles' must think of him trying to scent him when they only barely got into the hotel room.

"Derek, I can feel you silently freaking out. It's okay if you want to scent me. You're on the cusp of your heat and even with suppressants that's bound to make you feel more affectionate towards me. It's cool, dude," Stiles said above him, laying his chin over the top of Derek's head lightly. Happy to have gained permission, Derek pressed his nose firmly against the base of Stiles' neck. He even went as far as to rub his own cheek lightly over the skin of Stiles' neck to mix their scents re-positioning his head onto Stiles' shoulder so he could glance at the menu Stiles' was holding in front of him. 

"Do you know what you want?" Derek asked, eyes lazily wandering over the desserts. 

"If you think I was thinking about food at all while you were rubbing your scent all over me, you have no idea of how much allure you hold to me," Stiles teased in a somewhat breathless voice. Derek's eyes glanced down towards Stiles' lap without thought and he felt himself rumble quietly at the sight of Stiles' noticeably filled out crotch. 

"I'm thinking I want some meat. What do you think about steak?" Derek asked, grinning at the noticeably wider pupils that Stiles' was sporting. After a quick, barely there flash of red, Stiles nodded and let Derek get up to do place their orders with room service. After the order was placed, Derek took a walk outside to check out the hot tub and fire pit. The fire pit turned out to be gas and flamed to life with the press of a button. Likewise, the hot tub was simple and clean. The hotel obviously put out big bucks for their cleaning and filtration system because Derek couldn't detect any chlorine or harsh chemical agents used to clean the water and offend delicate werewolf noses. 

"Thinking about a dip before dinner?" Stiles voice sounded from behind him. Derek turned and took in the sight of Stiles leaning against the door frame. 

"Maybe," Derek answered, smiling mischievously. "Why? Would you want to join me?" 

"Oh, but Derek, I didn't bring my swim trunks. Whatever shall I do?" Stiles joked as he slowly walked across the deck to where Derek was standing next to the tub. 

"I didn't bring mine either. If you don't tell anyone, I won't," Derek suggested before beginning drag his shirt up over his head. 

"Oh, I'm going to tell everyone if you don't figure out a way to gag me," Stiles replied, his eyes shining dully red as they swept up from Derek's chest to meet his eyes. Derek reached down and began to unbutton his jeans, watching as Stiles licked his lips and tracked the actions hungrily. 

"Lucky for you, I’m full of inventive ideas on how to keep men like you silent, but first I think you've got far too many clothes on..." Derek trailed off as he pushed his jeans and underwear down to pool at his feet. He stepped out of them and gave Stiles a smirk as he looked him over head to toe. He turned and started to climb into the tub, calling over his shoulder, "You coming?" 

"God, I hope so." He heard Stiles mumble under his breath before the sound of clothes hitting the deck began. Pushing the button for the bubbles, Derek found a seat along the edge and watched as Stiles clamored over the side of the tub. Derek felt his mind wander to how good it would feel to have Stiles gagging _him_ instead of the other way around and unconsciously began worrying at his bottom lip as Stiles found the seat across from him. 

"You're awfully far away," Derek noted aloud. 

"I just figured it would be easier to talk about boundaries before we start really crossing any. Is it okay with you if we get move sexually involved? I feel like we're heading that way, but I understand that ultimately I'm just here to do you a favor. I don't want there to be any confusion between us if things get more... physically intimate. I don't want you to feel like you have to submit to me or have sex with me in order to have me still help you out." Stiles finished. 

"That’s... that's not how I feel. I like you, a lot. I would be okay with things going...further, if you are? I mean, I know it's partially biology, but I feel like our bodies are definitely on board and I...I trust you. I don't think you'd abuse the situation," Derek responded. He definitely felt the air of flirtatiousness and lust dissipating. He could see where Stiles was coming from on the issue, but he wished they'd had this discussion in the car on the drive up and not while he was a quarter percent away from cumming with Stiles' offer of a blow job on the table. 

"I hope I wouldn't, but if you ever feel like I am, I want you to tell me. I hope you would," Stiles was looking at Derek in question. Derek sighed and nodded, hoping that he would also. They stayed silent for a minute as the bubbles and jets whirred around them. 

"So now that I've killed the mood..." Stiles joked, moving through the water and straddling Derek's thighs. Derek felt his breath catch at having the Alpha suddenly so close. Stiles bent down his head and kissed Derek sweetly once before pressing another more serious kiss in its wake. Derek braced his hands on Stiles thighs, rubbing them over and over the tops as he responded with lips and tongue to Stiles' advances. 

Stiles broke away first with a gasp, sliding his body closer to Derek's. Derek dipped his head, mouthing over Stlies' chest and nippling playfully at the skin. 

"Fuck, Derek," Stiles moaned, arching his back and holding Derek's head in place as he sucked and bit at one of Stiles' nipples. After a particularly sharp nip, Stiles pulled gently at Derek's hair to pull his head back and then plunged his tongue into Derek's mouth, kissing him hungrily as he ground his hips forward to let Derek feel how hard he was along the planes of Derek's stomach. 

"I think you said you were going to gag me. Why don't you sit on the ledge here and let me see if you're true to your word?" Stiles asked after breaking away again for breath. Derek nodded dumbly and let Stiles slide off his lap so he could hoist himself out of the water. His dick had recovered from the break of mood earlier wonderfully. 

"God, Der," Stiles said with a sigh as he brought his hand up to start stroking up and down Derek's length. "Your cock is fucking perfect." 

Pulling it down, Stiles pulled back the foreskin enough to suck lightly on the tip. Pushing forward, he kept going until Derek felt the zing of pleasure at hitting the entrance to his throat. There was still a few inches out of Stiles' mouth, but his hand was jacking the uncovered length in tandem with Stiles' tortuously slow bobbing motion. Derek leaned back and braced his hands on the outer ledge of the tub, watching Stiles take his cock deeper into his mouth down the line of his body. When Stiles tongue hit a particularly sensitive part of his shaft, Derek's hips involuntarily bucked causing his cock to pop further into Stiles' throat. Derek opened his mouth, ready to apologize when Stiles' moaned loudly around his length and searched out the spot again with his tongue. After it happened twice more, Derek felt the need to tug gently at Stiles' hair to get him to make eye contact as he tongued sucking and lapping around his shaft. 

"Stiles, if you keep doing that I'm going to end up fucking your face. I want to make sure you're really okay with that before I...fuck, ah!... before I actually do it," Derek asked, having to pause in the middle as Stiles' tongued his leaking slit evilly. Stiles pulled off completely, hand still smoothly jacking Derek off as he answered. 

"I'm perfectly okay with a little audience participation. I'll pinch you if I need you to stop," Stiles replied shortly before pulling Derek back into his mouth and sucking him like his number one goal was to get Derek to bury himself quickly down to the short and curlies. 

Throwing his head back, Derek let his hips thrust sinuously in and out of Stiles' mouth while he worked him over. Occasionally, Derek would roll his head to watch Stiles go to town on his cock, but then he'd feel the familiar tightening of an impending orgasm and pull back. When Stiles' began to pull him into his throat on every stroke, Derek felt the losing battle of letting himself hold back. Thrusting into Stiles' mouth with a little more purpose, he gripped the other man's shoulder tightly. 

"I'm close, Stiles. I'm so fucking close," Derek gasped out, feeling his well controlled rhythm start to falter and cause Stiles' throat to unexpectedly contract in a gag. He pulled back, but Stiles pushed forward and took him back in deep to continue working him. Despite the drool and tears, Stiles looked so fucking hot gagging himself on Derek's cock and with a shout, Derek felt himself curling over Stiles' head as he emptied himself down his throat. Slumping back, Derek was surprised when Stiles popped up out of the water and began stripping his cock over Derek's spent cock and balls. He came quickly, splattering his cum over Derek's cooling skin. Sitting down in the water, Stiles splashed his face and then slumped against the side of the tub. 

"That," he started hoarsely, sighing in contentment, "was awesome." 

Derek hummed his agreement as he scooped some water out of the tub to help wash off his skin before he sank back down into the water. No sooner than he'd gotten comfortable did the knocking start at the front door to alert them that room service had arrived. 

"Well fuck..." Stiles groaned, "I guess I'll go get it. And some towels. Be back in a minute." 

\--- 

The next morning when Derek awoke the sun was still behind the horizon and the air outside seemed washed in blues. Stiles was sleeping soundly on his side of the bed, not even close to touching Derek, but Derek felt like he was on fire. Stumbling out from underneath the covers, his skin erupted with goosebumps at the chill air of the hotel. It didn't seem to matter to his body, he didn't feel like he was cooling off much. Grumbling to himself, Derek padded over to put on one of the plush complimentary robes before heading downstairs to make coffee. He stoked the embers in the fireplace knowing that even though he was burning up, it was quite chilly in the hotel room.  

As soon as his coffee was ready, Derek padded back into the living room in front of the fire. He was beginning to feel the malaise of his suppressed heat settle over him. He was also finally cooling off from his earlier fever. Pulling a throw blanket from the back of the couch over his knees, he huddled over his coffee cup and tried to make his brain follow his body in waking up a little more. A groan from upstairs perked his ears as he began shivering despite the robe, coffee, and blanket. Derek noted the beginning of a headache starting in one of his temples.  

Stiles stumbled his way down the stairs, looking adorable sleep disheveled and groggy. He yawned through his "Good Morning" as he walked past the couch to where the coffee pot was. After pouring himself a cup, he trudged over to the chair adjacent to the couch and plopped down into it, yawning again loudly.  

"Are you the one who wakes up the chickens? It's soooo early, Der," Stiles asked through a full body stretch slash contortion act that made Derek begin to feel hot all over again.  

"Sorry. I got hot so I came downstairs and then I got cold so...." Derek explained softly, the headache beginning to manifest in the opposite temple now.  

"Aw I'm sorry to hear that. Need me to get you anything or do anything?" Stiles asked, looking marginally more alert as Derek began rubbing a hand over his forehead to try and soothe the pain of his growing headache.  

"No, I'm okay. My head is just starting to hurt. I'm sorry for waking you. You can go back to bed." Derek murmured, closing his eyes and pulling his body in more tightly. After a pause, Derek felt Stiles warm hand on the back of his neck, fingers digging in gently and massaging the tense muscles.  

"Here, lean forward for a moment," Stiles commanded softly, urging Derek to make space between his back and the arm of the couch. When Derek complied, Stiles smoothly moved into the space and continued massaging Derek's neck and shoulders.  

The firm pressure at the base of his skull was helping lesson his headache and the warm feeling of Stiles behind him removed some of the malaise he'd been experiencing. When Stiles finished, he pulled Derek back into his chest and let him rest there, with his head propped on his shoulder as he enjoyed the warmth and comfort of an Alpha taking care of him.  

After awhile and a long nap for both of them pressed against each other on the couch, Derek stirred to Stiles shaking him gently. Blinking blearily, Derek looked over his shoulder at him in lieu of verbally responding.  

"I gotta run to the bathroom. Also, I was going to order some breakfast. Are you a sweet or a savory when it comes to breakfast foods?" Stiles asked him as he extricated himself from behind Derek's back. Derek whined in response, missing the warmth immediately. Sighing, Stiles pulled his shirt over his head and laid it over Derek's chest on top of the blanket. Derek felt himself preen at the response and his stomach settle at the smell of his Alpha.  

"Usually savory, but I could go for some sweet..." Derek responded shyly, blushing for some unknown reason. Stiles grinned and winked at him before walking back towards the stairs.  

"I'll make you proud. Be back in a minute." 

Derek picked up the shirt and held it against his face, breathing deeply. It smelled like sleep and Stiles and _them_ and it made Derek want to writhe in satisfaction under his Alpha. He leaned back into the couch, shirt draped over his face as he waited for Stiles to return. It calmed him and made him want to unclench his body.  

\--- 

Sometime later Derek jerked awake to the hotel door opening. He pulled the shirt off of his face and looked towards the sounds, noting that Stiles had put another shirt on instead of reclaiming the one on Derek's face and that his hair was damp from a shower. A moment later a hotel server wheeled in a cart laden with  dome covered dishes and after Stiles handed him a couple bills, backed out of the room to leave them to their food.  As soon as the door was closed, Stiles turned and grinned over at Derek.  

"Pretty sure you're going to love me when you see what all I ordered."  Derek blushed at his own silent commentary about how obviously gone he already was on the young Alpha. 

Derek lifted his nose and sniffed the air, seeing if he could discern anything particular. Stiles pushed the cart closer to the living area and started uncovering plates and setting them out all over the coffee table. There were chocolate filled croissants, monte cristos, fruit, orange juice, scrambled eggs, bacon AND sausage, fried potatoes, and Belgium waffles. Derek stared at all the food, mouth quickly filling with saliva, while Stiles refilled his coffee cup with a fresh coffee.  

Dragging the coffee table closer, Derek began to dig in with gusto. It took him one round of everything to notice that Stiles was only sipping his coffee and nibbling on a monte cristo.  

"There's plenty here, Stiles," Derek pointed out, mouth still slightly full of croissant. Stiles smiled indulgently and took another sip of his coffee. 

"I'll eat whatever you don't. This will do me for now," Stiles offered, waving towards his half eaten sandwich. Derek frowned dubiously at the sandwich, but knew better than to argue.  

Decent Alphas tended to let Betas and Omegas eat first, but especially Omegas in heat. Even though Derek's heat was being suppressed, he knew he was still giving out faint chemosignals of impending fertility. The suppressants could stop him from conceiving and becoming mindless with the need to breed, but they couldn't stop everything. The trade off for not being mindless with breeding hormones was that Derek knew he was going to feel crampy and emotionally needy. Having an available Alpha with him meant that generally speaking he'd be taken care of and the wandering thoughts of what exactly that could entail consumed Derek's mind as he finished his fill of the breakfast. Stiles cleared his throat, jolting Derek out of a particularly vivid fantasy.  

"Want to use the hot tub again today? I ready in one of the brochures from the night stand that it's salt water so it should feel really great if you start cramping or feeling sore," Stiles asked.  

"Sure," Derek responded with a grin.  

\--- 

The hot tub was everything Derek thought it would be. He'd submerged himself to his neck in the warm, bubbling water and felt the tension leak out of him. It was more than just the pseudo-heat, but the crap with Kate and work all leaked out.  Leaning against the side, he let his legs float out in front of him while he hummed in satisfaction.  

"You look so blissed out right now," Stiles commented, making Derek open his eyes. He hadn't realized that he'd closed his eyes. Stiles held up his phone and snapped a quick picture of Derek flipping him the bird playfully before setting the phone on the side of the jacuzzi and lowering himself in.  

"Oh sweet Jesus, now I know why you had that look on your face. How does this feel even better than last nigh?t" Stiles intoned, stretching his arms out in front of him through the water before settling back near Derek. Their legs brushed against each other in the water.  "Mind if I take some facebook selfies of us?" 

"Sure sure, it's all part of the plan." Derek felt a small sting of bitterness at the last part. He didn't really like the idea of what they were doing coming to an end. He wanted real selfies and longer vacations and more of what he and Stiles were building... but in real life. Not just to trick Kate into clearing out of his life for good. Water sloshed as Stiles maneuvered closed to him.  

"Do you want to be behind me or in front?" Stiles asked uncertainly.  

"Behind," Derek replied, thinking about how much he'd like that dynamic in photos he'd seen before. He'd be putting himself in a dominant, possessive position around Stiles.  Stiles smiled and they maneuvered themselves until Stiles was kneeling/sitting in front of Derek in the water while Derek controlled the camera on the phone.  

The first couple photos were goofy with them making silly faces and cheesing at the camera. When Stiles turned and pressed his face against Derek's throat however... the jacuzzi suddenly didn't feel as hot as Derek's skin. Hands trembling slightly, Derek took the photo unsure of what face to make when he wanted to do nothing but lift his chin and let Stiles sink his teeth into the cords of his throat.  Again, Derek hadn't realized he'd closed his eyes until Stiles' hand cupped his cheek and pulled his face down. He felt their foreheads rest against each other and slowly he opened his eyes to look into Stiles'.  

"Take the picture," Stiles whispered, his breath warming Derek's lips. Derek absently felt his finger squeeze the button on the side of the phone. Stiles let out what could only be described as a giggle, pushing forward to kiss Derek's lips quickly and then he was gone. Derek felt Stiles relieve him of the phone and then he was sinking back into the water, letting it lap around his chin as he calmed his racing heart. It had felt too real... and then not real at all. It was jarring how much he'd been believing in their farce. _'At least that means everyone else should believe it too_ ' his mind supplied wryly.  

"This is great. Thank you so much for letting me come with you." Stiles said, jarring Derek from his thoughts. Derek hummed non-commitally and worked on letting himself relax into the water.  

\---- 

The cramps and aches grew as the day progressed and Derek ended up huddled on the bed surrounded by Stiles while he napped on and off as movies played on the TV. Stiles helped where he could, massaging Derek's muscles and getting him warm or cold things to drink. Derek for his part mainly buried his face into the Alpha's neck and chest taking long, deep breaths of the calming scent. That night when most of it had faded into the background and Derek could pull himself away from Stiles long enough to settle in for actual sleep, he was surprised when Stiles scooted up against him, his long arm wrapping around Derek's waist and pulling his body in close against Stiles' own.  

The hush of night fell over them, Derek acutely aware that this position was not having the intended effect on him. Instead of feeling safe and protected, he felt... horny. It was taking everything in him not to start squirming and rubbing himself against Stiles. Every time he shifted, he froze in horror that Stiles might know what the position was doing to him. He'd love to pretend like this was the first time, but spooning had always made Derek more horny than sleepy.  

"You okay?" Stiles asked sleepily, shifting closer to press more of his body against Derek's back side. Derek wasn't even aware he was grinding back against Stiles' body until he felt the soft, surprised, "Oh!" leave Stiles mouth. He froze, embarrassed heat rushing through his body. He began to shift away, mortification making him wish he could just go sleep downstairs on the couch when Stiles hand on his hip stopped him from moving. 

"Is this what you need?" Stiles asked, his hips rolling against Derek's ass. Derek whined, nodding while his hand shot back to grab onto Stiles, keeping his pressed tight against him.  

"What do you want, Derek? How far?" Stiles asked, his lips pressing gently against Derek's shoulder.  

"Not... not penetration, but... but... _this_. I want skin on skin. I want to feel you spilling onto my skin." Derek's breathing was starting to get hitched with how much he wanted Stiles. His body wanted to open for him and take him in, but the heat suppressing drugs made it unwise to do so. He wouldn't produce enough slick to garuntee it wouldn't hurt for one or both of them, but the feel of Stiles' skin against his was addictive. He still wanted to be marked. He still wanted to smell Stiles on him when he got home.  

"Okay. If I do something you don't like, just tell me to stop." 

Derek was still nodding even as he felt Stiles hand slide from his waist down into the side of his underwear, caressing the taut, smooth skin of his hip and down into the hair on his leg. Derek's underwear tugged down with the hand and Derek, desperate for more, lifted his other hip off the mattress to facilitate Stiles smoothing the fabric down his body until he could kick them off the side of the bed. He felt some wrestling behind him and a draft of air as Stiles's skin separated from his own. Before he could whine or call out, the warmth was back without interruption. Derek turned over, his lips seeking Stiles' as his hands began to explore the naked Alpha pressed against him, hips grinding against his own mindlessly.  

"This probably isn't the right time, but after this stupid Christmas party is over can I still date you?" Stiles asked as he mouthed over Derek's shoulder and neck.  

"Yeah, yeah...." Derek sighed, arching his neck into Stiles' lips and letting his hand drift between them to take both of them in hand for a loose, dry stroke.  

"Oh GOD," Stiles cried, hips jumping forward at the sensation. Derek smiled to himself and brought his hand up to his mouth. He licked over his palm and fingers, getting them wet with saliva before returning it back between their bodies for a smoother, firmer stroke.  Stiles gasped at the sensation, and Derek took advantage of his arching body to lean forward and press biting kisses against his chest. Stiles hitched a leg over Derek's hip, pulling him closer even as he started fucking into his tight grasp. Derek felt a hand stroking tentatively down his side and back, lightly kneading into his lower back and inching lower slowly. Derek moaned when that hand was able to trace a lone finger down the crack of his ass, not pressing in but silently asking permission.  

"Yessss," Derek hissed through the mouth full of earlobe he had been nibbling on. Stiles dipped his finger against the crease again but this time let it drag between, pressing closer to the barely slickened hole where Derek would want him the most during a real heat. Stiles stroked over the fluttering sphincter, dipping against the loosened rim and teasing Derek. It took Derek a minute to realize he was growling against Stiles neck as his hips tried to work the finger inside of him. Stiles was keeping it from going past the first knuckle, pulling away when Derek pushed back harshly.  

"Give it to me" Derek growled. Stiles chuckled darkly against his temple, and when Derek turned his face up to glare at him Stiles captured his mouth in a searing kiss. Derek felt distracted by the slick, sweet slide of their lips and tongues and let out of surprised, satisfied groan when Stiles pushed not one, but two fingers into his aching hole.  

"You're so wet, Der. I didn't think you'd be this wet in a pseudo-heat." Stiles grunted out, fucking his hips forward into Derek's slackened fist even as he pumped his fingers mercilessly in and out of Derek. Derek could feel his orgasm building quickly as he ground back to ride Stiles' fingers, his body losing itself to pleasure.  

"Fuck, Stiles! Ah, I'm so fucking close. Just a little..." Derek gasped as the feeling shot through him, his body drawing tight and them relaxing as spurt after spurt of cum pushed out of his cock. Stiles withdrew his fingers, thick and wet with slick, and began fisting his cock between them as Derek caught his breath. It didn't take long before Derek felt the warm splash of cum on his stomach and chest, Stiles whining as his release racked his body.  

They lay there panting and collecting themselves. Derek felt languorous and sleepy, ready to turn in for the night finally. He fell asleep right as he felt the bed shift, Stiles padding towards the bathroom  presumably to clean up. Derek couldn't be bothered, he felt too good to move.  

\---- 

The next morning as they packed up their belongings, Derek looked at his phone for the first time all weekend. No missed calls were registered, but he had a voicemail waiting in his inbox. Stepping outside onto the patio, he dialed in his PIN and waited for the message to begin.  At the first ragged breath, Derek's blood ran cold. The phone slipped from his grip and clattered onto the hardwood.  He wasn't aware of slipping down after it, knees giving out and ass tumbling down until Stiles appeared before him, crouched and calling his name. Or at least Derek thought it was his name since he couldn't hear anything past the white noise in his head. When his vision started to go dark and fuzzy around the edges, he had a moment of clarity realizing he was about to faint. He was dimly relieved that it was Stiles who would see it and take care of him.  

As Derek came to he was aware of two things: A) he was still on the deck with Stiles, B) he had just had a very negative physical reaction to the sound of Kate's _breathing_.  Blinking his eyes open the first thing he saw was Stiles hovering over him looking worried.  

"Are you okay? Do you want me to call a doctor?" Stiles asked, helping Derek sit up.  

"No. No doctor, I'm fine...ish. I just came out here to listen to a new voicemail and... it was Kate. I just... dread spread through me so fast and I couldn't hear anything past her breathing but... I'm scared. I didn't even hear the rest of the message, I just... why would she call me?" Derek asked, feeling his heart beating faster as the fear and dread settled into his muscles.  

"I dunno man. We can try listening to the message together if you want? Or  I can listen to it alone and just relay it?" Stiles offered, picking up Derek's phone from where it had fallen on the deck. Derek took a moment, staring at the phone in Stiles hand. He didn't want there to be a message at all. He didn't want to hear it. He didn't want Stiles to hear it and know what she'd said. He just wanted to delete the damn thing and forget it had happened... but the prickling feeling at the base of his skull told him he should probably listen to it at least once.  

"Let's listen to it together. I might not make it through the whole thing mentally and I don't want to have to replay it" Derek decided. Stiles nodded and hit the play button.  

Again, the harsh breathing was the first thing to play. Derek had no doubt he would know that sound in his nightmares one day. After what seemed like a full minute, Kate spoke.  

"Derek, where are you?" Her voice was ragged, her mouth sounded full of shifted, sharp teeth. She sounded out of control. "Deeeerrreeekkk, where are you?! I'm at your apartment... ridding your bed of all that Knot Block's stink... you're mine, Derek, remember? UUUunnnnngggg, where ARE YOU?!" She roared the last question and Derek could tell she'd tried to use her Alpha voice on him over the phone. "I'm in rut, you're supposed to be here, where's my Omega? Where are you, Derek? Gunna rip this place apart until I find you.... gunna find you, gunna get you, gunna fuck you, gunna breeeeeed you. Gunna clai---" 

The line went dead, apparently she'd reached the maximum length of message. Derek was suddenly glad she'd spent almost a minute just breathing on the line because he knew he didn't want to hear what else came next. He was shivering, vision blurred with tears, small hurt sounds coming from his throat and Stiles was wrapping his arms around him, pulling him tight into his neck while he rubbed circles into his back. Time stopped meaning anything as Derek trapped his conscious thought into the simple tasks of breathing and calming his racing heart. He didn't want to pass out again.  

"When we get back, I'll take you to Laura's. We can go ahead and call the cops if you want so they can check out your apartment without you being there. Does that sound okay?" Stiles asked when Derek had finally calmed enough to pull away from the embrace. Derek took in a deep breath and met Stiles open, concerned eyes and nodded.  

"Will you call them while I go check us out?" Derek asked, feeling the need to not be in the room when Stiles called them. He needed to be moving.

  "Yeah, no problem." Stiles replied, his hand rubbing up and down Derek's arm in a comforting gesture.  

Derek tried a weak smile at him, pushing himself up and off of the patio floor. When he was standing, he turned and walked straight out of the hotel room door and away. He knew it might seem rude, but he needed to run away for a minute. He needed to get his head on in private. Hopefully Stiles would understand.  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You can check out my stuff and my at [ my tumblr, SkinSharpenedTeeth ](http://skinsharpenedteeth.tumblr.com) any time. I take prompts and I like talking to folks about Sterek.   
> Comments and kudos are always welcome and help me get out of bed in the morning to continue writing. Thank you! :)


	8. Chapter Seven

The bed was destroyed. The couch was in shreds. Dishes had been broken, drywall clawed into, and debris thrown everywhere. Plus the smell. Kate had rubbed herself against what smelled like every surface of the apartment. There was urine, sweat, and other bodily fluids coating everything. His clothes were mostly in tatters, especially his underwear. Especially. 

Derek looked at what was his home with dulled horror, his ears beginning to clog with the now familiar rush of white noise that precluded a panic attack and ultimately fainting. He turned and walked back into the hallway taking deep, slow breaths to steady himself. He'd sent Stiles home so he could actually go to work in the morning and while extremely reluctant, Stiles had heeded to Derek's wishes. Mainly because Derek had told him he would call Laura over _before_ heading into his apartment to survey the damage. Faced with the deep furrows rent into the paint of his front door, Derek had forgotten all about calling anyone except his boss. Derek had requested the entire week off. Mr. Lahey hadn't seemed too thrilled about it, but he'd begrudgingly let him after a few pointed comments about personal emergencies and the media frenzy that would ensnare the sibling companies if Derek took Kate to court over this. Already it was a scandal because the police couldn't find her. A mad Alpha without a rut partner wandering unattended? They figured a rape or death would show up and point them in her direction, but it'd been two days and nothing had come up.  

Sighing, Derek called Laura with his back still to the open apartment door. Occasionally he'd get a waft of Kate's stink that would cause his throat to constrict unpleasantly, but generally the hallway smelled too much like other people for it to overpower him. Laura picked up after the second ring. 

"Derry?" she asked, sounding worried.  

"Hey LaLa", he answered. Even he could tell his voice sounded wrecked and if he'd felt a little less like a rung out paper napkin then he might try to disguise it. As it was, Derek moved further away from his apartment and into the hallway to lean against one of the walls. 

"How bad is it?"  Laura's faraway voice asked through the phone. 

"Expensive." There was a pause as they both tried to smile at his almost joke. "Basically I'll have to burn the place down to ever get the smell of her out of the walls. I can't stay in there very long without panicking. I'm not sure what to do. There's some odd pieces of suits that she didn't demolish, but that's basically it." A cold fury swept through his body at the thought of all that she had destroyed. It broke a sweat out over his body as his muscle clenched and released in tremors of anger. 

"Damn. That fucking sucks. So do you want me to game plan you?" she asked, pulling a classic Alpha tactic and just barrelling forward to fix everything immediately. Sighing, Derek rubbed a hand over his face as he glanced between his fingers towards his apartment. A watery sheen started to obscure his vision and hitching a breath in, Derek turned away to stare at the sedate, floral painting on the hallway way by the elevator doors. 

"No. Just come pick me up. I don't think I should be driving. We can game plan later." He replied thickly. 

"Are you going to call Stiles?" Derek's heart jumped at the name. What he'd really have liked to do show up at Stiles' office and lay on his green couch in the dark and just sleep for an eternity while the Alpha combed his fingers through his hair and told him that he'd keep him safe forever. Unfortunately that wasn't a realistic course of action, much to Derek's chagrin. 

"No. I'll talk to him after he gets off work. Right now I just want to sleep. I was dreading this too much to get much rest last night," Derek replied distantly. He felt the fragile glue of his calm holding him together, but it trembled from the pressure beneath his skin. 

"Sure. I'll be there in thirty. Meet me outside." 

"Sure," Derek sighed, a little relief washing over him at the thought of getting out of the building. 

Derek hit the end button on his phone and pocketed it. Taking in a deep breath through his mouth, he turned and walked back to his apartment door and pulled it close, locking it before turning and letting his breath out slowly through his nose. He started walking, bypassing the elevator and turning to the stairwell. He had to get some of the energy out somehow. 

\---- 

The night before the Christmas party Stiles called him to chat. They had barely spoken since returning from their weekend away and Derek knew that was mostly his fault. He was drowning in his own thoughts and feelings. Stiles at first had barraged him with texts and phone calls, but eventually had just sent a text telling Derek that if he wanted to talk, Stiles would be a ready ear, but if he wanted to ignore it, Stiles would still be glad to take him to the Christmas party. That had been a week ago. 

Kate had been found in an emergency clinic. She'd been under lock down for her heat. Someone had anonymously dropped her off at the door of the clinic tied in wolfsbane rope and slavering to mate. When she'd become sensate again, she'd said she'd found someone she trusted before her heat took over to trap her and get her to safety. Derek mused that it may have been the only decent thing she'd ever done of her own volition, but then bitterly refuted it by thinking that she knew how to play society's game. She'd be taken care of in the clinic and she could bemoan a bond that didn't exist between the two of them in order to get her actions dismissed. It was a good defensive move if she hadn't gone quite so far to town on his apartment. Derek knew it wasn't a good sign that he was taking all of this so lightly. He felt vaguely numb to it all. 

His phone vibrated on the phone in front of him. Derek lifted away from the couch just far enough to read the screen before sighing and bending to pick up the phone. He answered with a sigh.  

"Hey Stiles," Derek answered dully, staring up at the ceiling of Laura's apartment. 

"Hey Derek. How are you doing?" Stiles voice was like a balm and a burn all in one. Derek hated the concern that laced his lighthearted small talk, but couldn't help the warm feeling it brought that he could still feel Stiles' trying to keep their tenuous bond alive. 

"Peachy." Stiles sighed through the phone like he didn't know where to go with that that wouldn't end in them bickering. They hadn't had a fight yet, but Derek knew it was beneath the surface for them if he kept up his attitude. He was punishing Stiles for Kate's misdeeds and so far Stiles was just taking it like a Beta. 

"Cool. Well, the Christmas party is tomorrow night. Do you still want to go? I mean, literally no one will blame you for backing out at this point," Stiles asked. Derek snorted. No one but his boss would blame him and his boss might just fire him on top of all the time he gave him off from the office.  

"Pretty sure I have to go. I'll be fine. Kate is still in custody after demolishing my apartment so hopefully _that_ will be a non-issue. I'll just drink wine and eat cheese and pretend everyone isn't talking about me behind their hands," Derek had meant to sound level headed, but as he finished he realized exactly how bitter he really was about the whole situation. Reaching down beside the couch, he picked up the glass of red he'd bee nursing while watching Rehab Addict and took a plaintive mouthful while he listened to Stiles' sigh again. 

"Okay... Do you still want to go _with me_?" Stiles asked, voice unsure, but before Derek could do more than inhale to respond Stiles cut him off in a rush. "Because I still want to go with you even if it's just as friends. I mean, we got kind of heavy at the lodge, but I can let that be a stand alone incident if things have changed. I don't want you to think I’m pressuring you into anything and if you need time to process and just want me to hang out and be cool, I can totally do that. I still want to be apart of your life, even if it's not romantically...and I guess, yeah. I'd like to take you to the Christmas party still if you'd like me to take you." 

Derek sat in shock, mouth still partially full of wine as he listened to Stiles' word vomit. It was so sweet and kind of Stiles to still want to hang around in the wings, but honestly Derek wasn't sure if it was a kindness or a cruelty to leave him hanging without an answer. It would help if Derek was sure what he wanted, but he hadn't processed much past drinking himself to sleep so he could have a few hours rest before the nightmares of Kate began. Better to not give Stiles much hope in case he never processes back to being a normal person again. Better not to leave him hanging in the wings. Derek would love for him to wait, aches to have someone who cares so much about him getting his shit together that he might just make the push to actually complete the task, but then when he turns to see the path towards that end he just... crumbles inside. He sits in the middle of the metaphorical crossroads and just drinks more wine from his box. 

"Yeah, yeah. No I think it'd be good to still have you as my date in case she gets out and shows her face. Just pick me up by seven?" Derek knew how he sounded, cool and unaffected. He sounded distant and unconcerned with the possibility of seeing his crazy ex-Alpha. 

Stiles made a sound that said more than simple agreement. It sounded like 'You're not fooling me for a second, but have it your way'. Derek didn't want it his way, but he was glad Stiles knew him well enough not to call him out on it just yet. 

"See you at seven, then." Stiles muttered, sounding a bit exasperated, and Derek hummed agreement before ending the call. Tossing his phone back onto Laura's coffee table, he picked up his glass of wine and downed most of it in a large gulp before reaching over to pull the box of wine on the table closer. Turning the spigot, he refilled his glass almost to the top. Flip and Move was on and he didn't have time to deal with this shit tonight. 

\---- 

Derek straightened his tie for the millionth time and swallowed down the dread that kept choking his throat. He wasn't going to back out now. He couldn't imagine showing his face at work- or anywhere now, for that matter, without knowing that he'd faced Kate down and proved that he'd moved past her. The problem was the idealism that had filled him over the weekend with Stiles had all but evaporated. Everything felt like a farce again and it rankled him. He knew the distance between Stiles and himself was his own fault, but he was still floundered as to how to fix it. He couldn't relax like he could when Kate was just making noise over the internet. Now that she'd proven herself destructive and threatening, he felt his hackles stuck in defensive mode. He didn't want to bring Stiles any further into his mess than what he had, but he didn't know if he could face everything on his own. 

"Hey, we better get going or we'll miss the entire party," Stiles said kindly, laying his hand on Derek's shoulder and letting it linger. Derek could see the fragile smile on Stiles' face and he wanted to bolster it with....something. Hope, maybe? He wouldn't be like this forever. Someday, they could recapture that lost weekend together at the lodge. 

"Yeah, I guess we've missed enough already." Derek answered, smiling weakly and moving towards the door while letting Stiles' hand slide off his shoulder. Stiles sighed somewhere behind him and followed him out the door and downstairs towards the car. 

The ride to the party was quiet. Derek didn't know what to say and every time Stiles tried to lighten the mood with some horrible party anecdote from his past, Derek could only smile limply at him and give grunts as a reply. Entering into the hotel ballroom was almost worse. There were so many people there and the atmosphere was dim and romantic. Occasionally colored lights would flash from the dance floor, blinding anyone turned towards the DJ. It made Derek feel claustrophobic and he almost turned around the second the doors shut behind him. His panic must have been evident because as soon as he shifted his weight to flee, Stiles lips were lightly touching his ear and he was whispering to him as his hand came to rest soothingly on his lower back, moving in small circles. 

"Come on,  I'm here with you. Let's go find Isaac and Erica and Boyd. I bet they're over by the bar. Do you want a drink?"  

Derek nodded minutely, letting Stiles drag him away from the main aisle and the crush of people. Somehow Stiles found them an uncrowded  area of tables where Derek could sit down and practice breathing again. Stiles sat by his side, holding Derek's hand but letting him handle it on his own otherwise. Derek appreciated it. He felt like any more stimulation and he was going to lose it. The fine layer of protection he'd build around himself to mute all his feeling after his apartment was rattling loose and pieces were falling away from him leaving him feeling exposed and vulnerable. He lifted his head and looked around the room finding the exits. Once he'd mapped routes to every single one, he felt the tightness in his chest loosen minutely and he drew in steadily deeper breaths. Soon enough the lights and sound just became background and he found himself nearly calm. Stiles' fingers were still laced with his own acting as a warm and comforting anchor. 

"You back with me, handsome?" Stiles asked, smiling like Derek hadn't just had an embarrassing minor meltdown. 

"Yeah, I'm fine now. Thanks." Derek shot Stiles a grateful smile. He didn't like noting that it was the first genuine smile to cross his face in weeks, but the way Stiles face lit up at receiving it made up for his small guilt at how much he'd been faking before that moment. 

"Do you wanna go look for the gang or do you want me to find them and bring them to you?" Stiles thumb was rubbing small circles into the back of his hand.  

"I..." Derek felt lost for a moment as he turned and stared out at the crowd. "Could you bring them here?" 

Stiles nodded twice before bending down and capturing Derek's lips in a sweet, chaste press. It promised he'd be back. It promised he'd take care of him. Derek pressed back quickly, accepting all those promises hungrily. When they parted Stiles gave him a soft look before moving away. Derek watched him get swallowed by the milling people who may or may not be his coworkers and felt a brief surge of panic, but it subsided when he reminded himself that Stiles was coming back. 

After a steadying breath, Derek began looking around again to distract himself from how alone and exposed he felt at the table. The bar was only a few feet away, so he stood and made walked to the end of the line, waiting to order himself and Stiles some drinks. A few minutes later with drinks in hand, Derek headed back to the table and sat with his eyes towards the dance floor, nervously sipping his drink. He wondered if Stiles would want to dance later. He wondered if Stiles has a room booked "just in case" like a lot of other Alpha's would in this situation. Kate always did for these functions, he mused. 

_Stiles isn't Kate_ ' Derek said to himself forcefully as he finished his glass of red wine. Sighing, he slumps back against his chair and began to reach into his jacket pocket for his phone. 

"Hey lover," a husky female voice croons in his ear. Derek jumps and whirls around to see Kate standing behind him resplendent in a tight black cocktail dress. Derek wouldn't scream. He couldn't _talk_ and screaming definitely required considerably more volume than conversation. His body flushed and he felt a cold sweat breakout under his suit at the sight of her predatory smile. It felt like his worst nightmare had come true.  

"Aren't you glad to see me? Or are you feeling guilty because you left me without a partner on my rut?" Derek was backing up, trying to get more space between them but she was stalking him at the same pace, never letting him lengthen the gap. He wanted to look around. He wanted to call out, but he couldn't take her eyes off of her. He didn't want her to catch him off guard. "That's water under the bridge, baby. I'm ready to forgive and forget. All missing you did was make me want you more." 

Her eyes glowed Alpha red, her face starting to shift as she got more worked up. She looked crazy to Derek. A small group of people had stopped their conversation to watch her approach him as the low almost subvocal growl she'd begun emitting rumbled across everyone's skin. It was unseemly to shift in public. It showed a lack of control. Derek couldn't agree more, because Kate looked like she was on her way to being completely out of control. 

"You going to answer me, lover? Tell me," she said, moving so quickly that he didn't have time to respond before her hand was in his hair pulling his head back at an extreme angle, exposing his throat. She spoke the next words through clenched fangs directly against the tendons of his neck. "Aren't you glad to see me?!" 

"Let him go."  Stiles voice rang out of the crowd. Kate growled and turned to look at him, but she kept her grip on Derek tight and unyielding. Derek could barely see him from the corner of his eye, but Stiles' eyes were glowing brightly back in challenge to Kate's. He hadn't shifted through, he just stood there looking ready for a fight. Derek whimpered before he could stop himself at the sight of Stiles getting ready to fight for him. 

"Who the fuck are you to tell me what to do with my Omega?"  Kate snarled, spit flying from her mouth as she tried to enunciate around her fangs. Her grip in Derek's hair tightened and he felt the bones shift in her fingers as her claws lengthened next to his skull. He was gasping, trying to draw air in but the extreme angle of his neck had him struggling to draw breath. 

"He's not your Omega, Kate. You two broke up. He's unbonded and unmated and he doesn't want you. Let him go, Kate. This doesn't have to get ugly. We can get you help. There are services to set you up with someone to meet your needs until you find your next partner. But Derek's not it. Derek's not yours and he doesn't want to be yours. Let him go, Kate," Stiles demanded. He sounded so reasonable to Derek. He was going to win her over through logic. 

The slightest bit of slack in her grip of his hair gave Derek a flash of hope before Kate's face shifted into her full Alpha form and she roared. Everyone in the crowd took an involuntary step back, except for Stiles. Stiles roared back, his fangs catching the disco lights as he answered her challenge. 

"That was just a bump in the road. This Omega is _MINE_!" Kate screamed, wrenching Derek further backwards. 

"Oh God, NO!!" Derek heard Erica yell even as he felt the snick of teeth parting the flesh on his neck. Kate was trying to claim him through bite and he imagined he could feel her teeth meeting as she tore into him. The pain was unimaginable and he was dimly aware that he was trying to scream. The magic of the claim felt like a fog against his brain. He felt himself trying to yield to the Alpha who was holding him. His limbs felt heavy and it felt like demons were whispering to him to just give up and let the Alpha take care of it.... but he didn't want this Alpha. This wasn't _his_ Alpha. This was Kate and she was not his mate no matter if she tore out his whole fucking throat. His brain fought the claim even as his body was receiving the physical blow of it. With a surge of energy, Derek began to writhe and fight as much as the position he was being held in allowed. He didn't want it, he didn't want it, he didn't want it, _he didn't want it_.... Derek felt the warm, thick weight of his own blood running down his chest and as his vision began to darken, his body going boneless despite his best intentions, he felt his brain echo Erica's exclamation. ' _Oh God....no.'_

A blow from the side wrenched Kate's teeth from his neck tearing pieces of him with it. The ground rushed up to meet him as Derek's vision went black. The last sound he heard was the snarl of two Alpha's battling above him. 

\---- 

Derek woke to a soft, warm tongue lapping at the wounding his neck. He felt a rising horror, his soul screaming at the thought that the claim had solidified with Kate. Tears leaked from his closed eyes as he tried to reconcile what surely had happened. Soon he'd feel the full weight of the claim and he's be a puppet to Kate's will. A quiet sob burst from between his lips before Derek could stop it, the thought of never seeing Stiles or having a chance to discover that possibility of mutual adoration breaking his heart further. A soft whine sounded beside him and despite himself, Derek let his eyes drift open.  

A dark red wolf lay on the ballroom carpet at his shoulder. Distantly he heard Kate snarling from another side of the room. His chest was sticky and growing colder. Somber amber eyes regarded him as Derek took in the black blood coating the wolf's muzzle. Reaching up, Derek touched his neck which was healing up slowly, and still leaking blood onto the carpet. Looking at his hand he noted the same black color in confusion. 

"What's happening?" Derek asked, hand starting to tremble the longer he started at the tar that was eeking out of him.  

"Your body is rejecting the claim," Boyd informed him, a note of wonder in his voice. Indeed, everyone standing around them was staring at Derek in fascination. 

"What?" Derek asked again, brain not comprehending. The wolf beside him whined again, shuffling closer. 

"Your body. For some reason it's rejecting the bite. It's pushing out her claim." A new voice sounded from the crowd and Derek looked up to see Dr. Deaton walking towards him. The man was famous for his medical practice and obviously a guest of another attendee at the ball if the tuxedo had anything to say about it. Derek continued to look up at him in confusion. 

"What? So I'm not going to be bonded to her?" Derek asked, a tightly furled hope blooming in his chest. 

"I think so? I mean, it's not unheard of but it's not usual either. Sometimes the body can fight a claim if it's unjust or if the intended has previously rejected the suitor. Your body knows where you really don't want something and if your wolf is strong enough, it will not submit to another's claim. The last forty years is really the only time we have recorded evidence of an Omega being able to fight off an Alpha's claim _internally_. It's really a pretty remarkable phenomenon," Dr. Deaton replied from the edge of the crowd. 

Derek was sobbing before he knew it. He was gulping great heaving gasps of air through the tears and full body shudders. Then he was laughing along with the tears. Rolling over, he buried his hands in Stiles' scruff and pressed his face into the hulking, fur covered shoulder. Stiles was wuffling and licking his neck and ears. When he'd calmed enough to let go and rolled back to his back he heard the tell-tale crunch of bone rearranging and then Stiles was shrugging on a tablecloth someone had thought to grab from one of the nearby tables. 

"You'll have to make a statement to the police when they get here," Stiles supplied unnecessarily, hand coming up to cup Derek's jaw affectionately. Derek shrugged tiredly, still smiling.  

"You okay?" Derek asked, looking over the parts he could see of Stiles' skin and trying to catalogue any red amongst the black.

"Me?! You're the one who just had their fucking throat ripped into!" Stiles exclaimed incredulously. Derek just shrugged and smiled before letting his eyes roam over Stiles a second time. 

"Yeah, but the claim didn't take....so I'm fucking great! Now how are you?" Derek asked, touching Stiles' cheek. He knew he had a dopey, delirious grin on his face but he couldn't stop smiling. His body had not recognized her as his Alpha. It wouldn't recognize her as his Alpha. It was.... amazing.  Plus she'd attacked him in front of all these other people...she was done for. She was as good as gone from his life forever. 

"I'm okay. I'm relieved. That was fucking terrifying," Stiles was saying as Derek's attention returned to the present. Leaning forward, he kissed Stiles' lips gently before pressing his forehead against Stiles' gently. 

"Yeah, but it's okay. She's going to go to jail or the nut house or something. She can't get away with her crazy in front of so many witnesses." 

Their breath mingled warmly between them as Derek shut out the gawkers and focused on the only person in this room who truly mattered to him in that moment. 

"Okay, yeah I can see why you'd be happy about that."  

\---- 

They watched as the police showed up and handcuffed a still wildly thrashing, belligerent Kate. It took three officers to contain her well enough to start moving her out of the door and towards their cars. Derek watched Stiles' grim face as he watched their progress with the mad Alpha. A surge of pity welled in Derek as he watched Kate finally get tranquilized in order for the officers to safely move her. 

"Hey Stiles," Derek said, drawing his attention away from the spectacle and back to him. Stiles made a distracted hum to show he was paying attention, but didn't move his eyes off of Kate as she was hauled closer to the doorway.  They'd moved to a small sitting area near reception to wait while a room was found for them. The company was paying for a suite so they didn't have to try and drive after such a fiasco. Derek watched as Stiles continued to stare at the now empty doorway for a moment before he tried again. 

"Hey!" Derek said a little louder, putting his hand on Stiles' chin and pulling his face towards his own. Stiles looked him with wide, questioning eyes as his focus was finally completely on Derek.  "Thank you." 

"You're welcome, Der." Stiles replied, face lighting up in a smile. Derek leaned forward and pecked his mouth lightly once before slowly pressing in for a second, deeper kiss. 

"Let's get out of here." 

"Yeah, okay," Stiles replied dopily, grin plastered across his face. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You can check out my stuff and my at [ my tumblr, SkinSharpenedTeeth ](http://skinsharpenedteeth.tumblr.com) any time. I take prompts and I like talking to folks about Sterek.   
> Comments and kudos are always welcome and help me get out of bed in the morning to continue writing. Thank you! :)


	9. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> long awaited heat sex...

*****Six Months Later*****

Derek laid back on the rumpled sheets with a huff of exhaustion. He'd woken up feeling like he was on fire from the inside out. While he'd been expected it the feeling never seemed to leave him breathless. After running to take a quick cold shower in Laura's guest bath, he'd come back and collapsed on the mattress in his room. Turning his head, he checked the clock on his phone to see what time it was. _Three frickin' A.M._ Groaning, he rolled to his side as a cramp hit him. He wasn't going to make it til morning. Pulling up his contacts, he pressed Stiles' number and sighed before rolling up into a sitting position. 

"'Lo?" Stiles frog-choked voice answered. 

"Hey babe, it's me. I'm starting," Derek replied calmly, throwing some lounge wear into an overnight bag. 

"You're what? Starting wha—Oh!" Derek smiled at Stiles' squeak when he realized what Derek was saying. "You're going into heat now?!" 

"Yeah, yeah I am," Derek replied a little breathlessly as he shoved his feet into his sneakers and headed towards the front door. "You still want me to come over, right?" 

Derek paused by the door, keys dangling from his fingers as a wave of heat passed through him and he waited for Stiles' reply. They'd been fighting the last few weeks on and off about Derek still staying with his sister and not making a move to renovate the apartment downtown. It had been a long, low key argument and even though they'd discussed Stiles assisting Derek with his heat for months, there was now a fear that all of this bickering may have changed Stiles' viewpoint on the matter. 

"No, yeah of course you can come over, Der. Just make sure you use a heat-taxi and I'll see you in thirty, okay?" Stiles voice had gone soft and Derek felt like he'd been dipped in caramel. He knew it was silly to still worry about Stiles' affections, but sometimes he couldn't help the voices in the back of his head. Letting out the breath he'd been unaware of holding, Derek turned the knob of the door and started downstairs to the waiting heat-taxi. 

"Okay. Getting in the taxi now. I'll see you in a few." 

"I love you, Der. Be safe. See you soon," Stiles replied before they hung up. 

Crawling into the heat-taxi Derek couldn't help but appreciate the fact that he couldn't smell anything or anyone else in the backseat. Heat-taxi's weren't quite as secure as the Pope Mobile, but they were pretty high up there. The driver didn't try to talk or communicate to Derek at all. As soon as the back door snapped shut, they were off to the address Derek had texted in that he wanted to be delivered to. 

The luxury of the heat-taxi was lost on Derek. Another wave of warmth traveled through his body and racked him in a cold sweat. He bent low over his knees and tried to breath deeply through his nose. His cock was starting to thicken to the point of being uncomfortable squashed as it was between his stomach and thigh. His hole was also starting to feel sensitive. He began to think of how good it would feel once he was stretched around Stiles' knot, getting plugged and filled for the next few days. Derek moaned into his hands at the visual and sat up abruptly, gripping the edge of the seat. If he got started here in this backseat pleasuring himself, he'd only be a danger to himself and everyone around him as soon as he got out of the car. He had to keep himself in control until he could reach Stiles' door. 

Shifting, Derek let out a surprised gasp as how good it felt just to get that small bit of friction against his hole. Looking down at his lap, he saw the outline of his own aching cock through his sweats and smelled the salty tang of his arousal. A small coin-sized wet spot was starting to grow near the head of his cock. Whining, he threw his head back and stared at the ceiling of the taxi. They needed to get to Stiles's apartment fast. 

No sooner than he'd thought it did the car slow to a stop and the 'Arrived' text ding on his phone. Grabbing his bag, Derek opened the door and staggered out into the empty sidewalk. The cool air raised chill bumps on his skin and cleared his head. He quickly walked forward towards the door into Stiles' apartment building and then down to where he knew Stiles' door was almost hidden by the staircase. When he got to it, the door was slightly ajar and a noted was taped over the peephole. 

_**come on in, D. I'm in the studio. Come and get me.**_

Derek grinned and pushed into the door. Immediately the smell of Stiles made him feel better and more desperate all at once. His mouth felt thick with saliva as he sucked lungful after lungful of Stiles' smell in. Growling lowly, he made his way towards the studio. He found Stiles standing inside fiddling with his camera. Volume of his growl increasing, he made his way into the room and stood directly in front of Stiles. Stiles' eyes slowly moved up to meet Derek's, caressing him with his gaze from his toes all the way to his eyes. Derek shivered, tilting his chin up in silent submission to his Alpha. Stiles moved forward and ducked his head to kiss the center of Derek's throat sweetly.Derek knew his eyes were glowing brightly in the dim room. He was panting through his mouth as his teeth began to drop and his nails began to extend and retract as he tried to hold himself still for his Alpha. 

Stiles nosed his way over Derek's collarbone and up towards his ear. His hands smoothed up over Derek's hips like he was afraid he'd break him. Derek whined again, his hole beginning to leak as Stiles' petted his sides lovingly. 

"Do you know what you smell like to me, Der?" Stiles whispered into the hinge of his jaw. Derek shook his head softly, unable to verbally respond. Stiles took another deep whiff on him over his neck and shoulder, lacing the path with small kisses and nips of his teeth. 

"Your scent is driving me crazy," Stiles continued, his hands slipping under Derek's shirt to push his sweat pants down past his hips so they pooled at Derek's feet. Derek trembled as Stiles continued petting his sides, beginning to draw the shirt up and over Derek's head. Left nearly bare, Derek took the liberty to slip his shoes off and push the pile of clothes further behind him as he waited for Stiles' next move. 

Stiles pulled back and looked over Derek again, this time naked, flushed, and leaking for him. His eyes burned brightly and Derek couldn't help the roiling growl that sounded from him as he spotted the heavy, full bulge of Stiles' approval. Stiles answered Derek's growl with once of his own before he leaned forward and captured Derek's mouth in a deep kiss. His hands circled Derek's waist, pulling him flush against his chest as they continued to try to devour each other. Snaking his hand down, Derek's could stop the excited grind of his hips as Stiles' hand cupped his ass cheek and slipped between them to push at his wet, winking hole. 

Derek moaned, canting his body to let Stiles' fingers delve deeper into him, but Stiles only slipped two into the second knuckle, pumping twice before pulling out in a tease. He took a small step back then, causing Derek to whimper at the loss of body heat, and brought his fingers up to his nose. He inhaled deeply the scent of Derek's arousal, causing Derek to blush at how dirty the action way. His eyes fluttered closed and his tongue snaked out to lick his fingers as if Derek's slick was ambrosia. When he opened his eyes, they were burning even more brightly than before and Derek felt a chill run down his spine. 

"I want to chase you, Der. I've got your scent in my nose and your taste on my tongue. If you don't make it to the bedroom before I catch you, then I'll mount you wherever we land. I've got about ten seconds left of control in me. You better take your head start. You better RUN!" The last word was shouted and Derek's first step was one of surprise. Then he grinned, lunging forward to lick over Stiles' lips before taking off at a breakneck speed towards the bedroom. He was already halfway there by the time he heard Stiles' low roar of pursuit. Trying to pick up his pace, he pushed on and felt the rush of victory as he crossed the bedroom threshold. Turning, he felt the air whoosh out of him as he was tackled onto the mattress by Stiles. 

Their growls and the heavy thuds of skin connecting filled the air as they struggled for dominance, each letting the other have advances only to push back. Finally, sweat soaked and panting, Stiles hovered above Derek in victory. He'd pinned Derek's wrists above his head and wormed his ways in between Derek's thighs. Almost unconsciously, the two rocked together to relieve some of the tension with sweet, barely enough friction against their red, dripping cocks. Stiles licked across Derek's throat, forcing Derek to pull his chin up and expose more of his neck to his Alpha. When Stiles had found his way back up to Derek's ear he was panting wetly against the skin. 

"Derek, please... let me take care of you," Stiles whispered, need raw in his voice. Derek swallowed thickly and tugged his wrists gently from where Stiles was pinning them. Stiles lifted up enough for Derek to roll onto his stomach, knees coming up to rest by his ribs as he turned his head and presented his neck and hole for Stiles. Closing his eyes, Derek waited for the bliss he knew he was about to experience. He was so tired right then from the struggle and the heat starting to wear him down, but he knew it would all melt away the second Stiles knotted him. 

The shudder that wracked itself through Stiles' body was audible. Derek felt the warmth of Stiles settling behind him, the press of his warm hand against his hip, and then the tip of his wet cockhead as he slid it through the mess of slick coating Derek from his balls to entrance. When the blunt pressure of Stiles started to push, Derek felt everything inside him draw tight in anticipation. He might cum just from the sweet stretch of Stiles' entering him. The small, teasing pulses of Stiles hips as he worked himself past the tight ring made Derek let out punched out moans and scrabble to clench the sheets in his hands. It felt so fucking good just to feel Stiles slipping the wide mushroom tip in and then to pull back out, tugging at the rim and making Derek's balls ache with the need to release. 

"Stiles.....ah, ah...Oh, please! Please Alpha, I need it," Derek whined into the sheets as he shivered from the need coiling inside of him. 

"Shhh, sh sh.... I'll give you what you need, Der. But fuck, you should see this. Your hole is so fucking wet and it's just trying so hard to pull me in further. Fuck, it feels so good, Der. You're body is so fucking good, feels so fucking good, Der," Stiles finished out in a gasp, his hips rocking forward and finally, finally pushing more than just the tip into Derek. Derek bit his lips, breathing fast and heavy through his nose as he tried to stay still and good for his Alpha, but when Stiles withdrew the little more that he'd pushed in on accident, it was a challenge. When Stiles started fucking in just the tip again, Derek felt warm tears start to push down his cheeks. It was so good, but it wasn't enough! 

"Please Stiles!" 

"Okay, babe. I got you," Stiles groaned, both hands moving to Derek's waist as he pushed slowly, but completely. Derek felt the muscles inside his hole flutter in the briefest mimic of an orgasm at how fucking good it felt to finally get filled. The need inside him dampened momentarily by the feeling of finally being full. Stiles rested for moment, encased in Derek's warm, wet heat as he draped himself over Derek's back and kissed his neck and shoulders. The sweet kisses had Derek practically purring, but the need to feel more than just Stiles' resting in him was beginning to win out over the pleasure of being worshiped by his Alpha's mouth and hands. He opened his mouth, ready to beg Stiles to please just get on with it, when he felt the Alpha's weight pull back from over him and the sweet pull of Stiles' cock retreating from deep within him begin. 

Stiles hovered above him, slowly building up and tempo and violence of his thrusts as Derek felt lost in pleasure. When Stiles pulled himself up to a slightly different angle, Derek felt fireworks erupt behind his eyes and his balls pull in tight against his body as he emptied himself onto the sheets beneath him, his mouth opened in a silent scream. The scream he couldn't sound came as a groan from behind him as Stiles felt the telltale squeeze and release of Derek's orgasm working through his muscles and beginning to milk Stiles' cock for the knot it needed to cool his heat. 

"Oh fuck, Derek. Oh FUCK!" Stiles yelled, his hips beginning a deep, dirty rapid thrust as his inflating knot starting to fill and catch on Derek's rim. 

"Oh God, Stiles...Oh fuck, Stiles, you're going to make me cum again. Please... Please Alpha, fill me up. I need it so bad. I need it, Stiles! Take care of me," Derek moaned and goaded from beneath him, starting to work his muscles manually to pull Stiles in deeper and work his cock harder so that the knot would lock inside him. 

"Fuck Derek, I'm... I'm..." Stiles started, his body bending and hunching as Derek felt the knot finally catch on his rim, too big to slip out. Stiles pulled his body down over Derek as he continued to try and push himself further inside, working the knot against Derek's rim as he worked a hand underneath Derek's torso to grasp at his still rock hard, leaking cock. "Cum for me one more time baby. I need to feel you cumming again. I'm so close, baby. I'm so fucking close...." 

Derek gasped at the feeling of Stiles' rough grip on his cock as he worked it over, pulling the foreskin past the head and focusing on the spot where the ridge of his cockhead and skin met. Derek worked his cock into Stiles' fist as much as he could feeling himself rocket towards another orgasm. Stiles was grinding and slurring encouragement into his neck, nose buried in the spot behind Derek's ear. What pushed him over the edge was the scrape of Stiles' fangs against the tendon in his neck, not enough pressure to be deliberate but enough to push his mind towards what he truly wanted. 

"Fuck, fuck, FUCK! Derek, Ah!" Stiles shouted behind him as Derek found his release and his body began to dance of milking Stiles' cock again, but this time also locking around the fully inflated knot. The warm pressure of Stiles' ejaculate hitting the inside of Derek's hole made him white out in bliss. This is what he had needed, this was the end he had been looking for. 

The two lay in a panting heap for a moment before Stiles gingerly helped to maneuver them onto their sides. He pulled Derek tight against him, his face still buried in Derek's shoulder as he fluidly and minutely worked his knot still inside. Stiles' orgasm would last for about five more minutes at a higher intensity while Derek would rest and receive all of Stiles' spunk into him. Then they'd both get a twenty minute break until the next flush of Derek's heat started and he needed another couple orgasms. The intensity and duration of these flashes of need for Derek would slowly weaken over the following couple days, but for now Derek would only feel a mild reprieve from the ache inside his body for his Alpha's knot. 

"Are you good, Der? Do you need anything?" Stiles tired voice slurred from behind him. Derek felt Stiles' hand creeping towards his momentarily spent penis and he grabbed it gently, intertwining their fingers. Clenching around Stiles, he grinned at the surprised gasp behind him and enjoyed the more invigored grinding that accompanied it for the next few moments until Stiles shuddered and gasped weakly in between his shoulder blades. "That was dirty, Der.... but so fucking good.Can I take that as a 'yes', you are currently fully satisfied?" 

"Yes, I am currently fully satisfied. 10/10 would let knot again," Derek teased before reaching down past where they were joined to cup and massage Stiles' balls gently. 

"Fuck, Derek. If you keep doing shit like that I'm never going to come down. Goddamn, that's so fucking hot though," Stiles breathed as his hands roamed over Derek's hips and chest. He started kissing and biting Derek's shoulders and back the longer Derek worked the large testicles in his hand. Leaning back to kiss lower, Stiles knot moved and pressed sharply into Derek's prostate making his hand clench involuntarily and his dick give a very interested twitch before starting to try and fill again. 

"Oh fuck, Der... I need this knot to go down right now. I want to pound into you so fucking bad. I want to leave bruises on this ass from how hard I'm going to fuck you. Fucking A..." Stiles hissed, his grip tightening against Derek's hips as his claws snicked out to briefly pierce the skin. Derek filed that reaction away and chuckled darkly to himself. 

"Shh. Let me deflate, Der. I have so much more to do to you and I'm not in a good position for all of it," Stiles promised, petting up and down Derek's arm and down over his stomach which was starting to feel tight with all the cum getting pumped into him. Grinning, Derek stretched with a grin over his shoulder and kissed Stiles lightly on the lips. The squeeze from his muscles caused Stiles to whimper and bite down on Derek's lip as he pulled away. "You're evil, but I love it." 

"I love it too. I love you also." 

"Me too, Der. Love you, too." Stiles sleepy response behind him told him all he needed to know. Settling down, Derek pressed his and Stiles' hands against his lower abdomen as he dozed and waited for them to start all over again. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The END!!
> 
> You can check out my stuff and my at [ my tumblr, SkinSharpenedTeeth ](http://skinsharpenedteeth.tumblr.com) any time. I take prompts and I like talking to folks about Sterek. Comments and kudos are always welcome and help me get out of bed in the morning to continue writing. Thank you! :)


End file.
